Peacock Feathers
by Insane-San
Summary: Kagome can see the dead. She meets an evil ghost that won't leave her alone until she finds who he's looking for. But what seems like a normal haunting turns into something that changes Kagome's life forever.
1. I

**_Insane-san says: _**_Here's another lovely story by me. The chapters for this one will come about once a week I predict...  
My sister told me that I need to work on describing surroundings more...So, reviewers, tell me if that's true. My fanfiction Mindless Theory has Inuyasha as the main character basically, but in this one Kagome is the main character. Some people prefer Inuyasha, others, Kagome... Enough rambling... Enjoy the chapter..? AND REVIEW AT THE END!  
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**P**eacock** F**eathers

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Hello. I'm Kagome Higurashi. I have a family, I go to school, and I pretty much have a normal life. I have friends, I have a pet, and I have a mother… Just like any other normal Japanese girl. Normal… I like that word. I am normal. Everything about me is normal. Except for one thing…

I can see ghosts.

Everywhere I go they seem to follow me.

Staring at me with their dark, looming eyes…

I have on several occasions wished I didn't have this so-called "gift".

And on other occasions, I'm pretty glad I have it. I think every family has some little quirk in their normal life. I said I was normal, right? Not true. No one's normal. Heh, guess I fooled you there… What is normal, anyway? I have asked myself that question a lot. Normal… Perhaps normal is the guy who lives on the curb around the corner…who always waits to smack you over the head with a bottle of booze just to laugh at you.

Is he normal? Nobody knows. Most would say he's not. But then again, no one truly knows what normal is.

I am about to tell you a story. My story. The story that will lead you to believe that nothing in this world is "normal".

It is a story of inquiry, hatred, longing, love and most importantly revenge.

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**Kagome's Point of View: **

"Kagome! Wake up, honey! School!" my mother called me.

I groaned and rolled over only to bump into something. I hesitated to open my eyes.

"Eeheeheeheee…" Someone laughed. My eyes widened. Ghost… In my bed…

"**UWAAAAA!**" I screamed. The ghosts bolted out of my room, laughing.

"Curse you, GHOST!"

He was an old-looking thing… Scraggly hair and baggy eyes... I'd always look for a reason in a ghost's expression as to why they wouldn't or couldn't move on…

This guy only looked like he was staying here for pure amusement.

And some ghosts don't even know they've died. As someone who can see ghosts, years ago I made it my job to help them move on.

'Senile little--' I walked into the bathroom and looked around quickly. Most ghosts wouldn't come in MY bathroom. Though they were ghosts, they could still smell. I found that out only months ago... I made sure my bathroom was good and **smelly**.

Sometimes I'd get an occasional once-was-a-perv in my bathroom as I showered. How wrong is that, I ask you!

I used to have my mother standing outside my shower door with a broom. She can't see ghosts, so she'd stand there swatting the broom around like crazy the whole time I showered...

I hung garlic on my shower curtain and put moldy cheese around the toilet. The bathtub was filled with sutras which never seemed to work, and there were bottles of curdled milk placed in a nice ring around my sink. Ghost proof? Most definitely.

I stripped myself and began my shower. I sang, I scrubbed, and I was paranoid. Always. All the time.

Wouldn't you be? I always wondered how ghost-proof this bathroom was… I hadn't seen a ghost in my bathroom once I made it Stink Heaven… The smell didn't bother me. Why? That's…a good question. Maybe after the first shower my nose went numb. I had never had a good sense of smell. I was always wishing that I could smell like a dog. Not literally…

I sighed and stepped out of the shower. I grabbed my towel when… I felt someone staring at me. I wrapped myself up right away and tried to look angry.

I knew I failed and ended up looking like a timid, embarrassed, female loser…

I searched the room and found the source of my emotion. A small kitsune ghost.

Demons were extinct. Long ago, they disappeared. Died, hid, ran...Got abducted by aliens...  
Hah, that last one was obviously a little joke... Sometimes I think that, though. That they really did leave Earth and are still alive somewhere.

No one was ever really sure what happened to them or where they went. But you were always safe to assume that if you saw a demon, it was a ghost. And everytime I saw a demon, they were always ghosts. It's a shame, really... They're really cool.

Anyways, the little ghost stared up at me with large, green eyes and a cute smile. A small fang poked out of his upper lip. His bushy tail bounced and he waved. "Hi!" He said.

I was stunned.

"H-…HI! What's that supposed to mean! You come in here when I'm stepping out of the shower NAKED, I remind you, and you say 'HI'!"

He was against the wall, now. Eyes wet and tiny body shivering. He was so scared of me… I suddenly felt guilty. He was a little child. I shouldn't have yelled… He didn't know better. But then again, demon children were much older than they appeared. So he must have known… "Listen…about the yelling… maybe I should have-"

"WITCH! **DEVIL-LADY**! I'M TELLING ON YOU!" He slipped through the bathroom door crying like and infant.

I banged my head against the door and let out a heavy sigh.

"Yeah, well… GO AHEAD!" I yelled back. Maybe I thought it'd make me feel better.

Maybe I thought that… he would hear me and be even more scared.

But there was that guilt again…

I always had a softness for young kids. He was so cute, too!

I dressed myself and left the stink heaven.

I had just stepped out only to bump into ANOTHER ghost!

"Oh for CRYING OUT LOUD! I've had enough! You ghosts should just LEAVE ME-"

I hand gripped my neck tightly and lifted me clear off the floor.

I let out a foolish laugh. A strange laugh. I was trying to cover my fear.

There behind his legs was that little kitsune ghost. He had a large grin and appeared to be hiding his laughter.

'_So, this must be daddy...?_'  
I forced a laugh.

"I…I'm sorry…You can do whatever you want, Mr. Strong person…Man…."

I looked up.

I shouldn't have looked up.

Gold eyes. Like Satan's eyes. I always believed Satan's eyes were Golden…

"…Thing."

He smirked.

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_**Insane-san says: **After about three chapters, I'll make them longer... I wrote these a couple monhts ago and I don't feel like adding anything to them...Becaaause...I'm lazy. THERE! It's out in the world now! Sound waves BOUNCING around all over...! -sob- Review now.

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	2. II

**_Insane-san says: _**_Here's another chapter... I figure, why not put up the chapters I have and then write more later and make everyone wait longer? Hah. Starting four fanfictions at once might be bad, but it could also be a good thing. Reviews please. They make me giggle._

_**This chapter is dedicated to my lovely reviewer, A Fading Shadow.**_

_**Dear Fading Shadow,**  
You are so nice  
You are so cool  
You're so effin' awesome  
I'll buy you a pool.  
Inuyasha's ego,  
of course it shall flare  
He'll be 'maniacal'  
Let's go eat a bear.  
I love Zelda  
And Baten Kaitos, too.  
I play Dance Dance Revolution.  
Let's smack Xhela with a shoe. _

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**P**eacock** F**eathers

**II **

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My heart was pounding rapidly in my chest.

'_A poltergeist?_' I asked myself. Their soul purpose is to stay on this earth to hurt and annoy the living; to create disorder and noise and pure chaos. And to add onto that evil,

**They never get bored.**

Once they start haunting and making havoc, they enjoy it to the fullest. **Forever.**

The only way to get rid of them is to have an exorcism done on your house by a Catholic priest…Either that, or move. And I didn't really have a solid religion… On top of that, I didn't know anyone who was Catholic. So I was stuck if he decided I was a nice target for his pain.

Why would you need to know this?

Because the only ghost that could hurt you was a poltergeist…

And I was feeling pretty darn hurt at the moment.

How did I know this was a poltergeist?

Because demons died out hundreds of years ago… not one existed today. Like I said.

He was dead, I knew that much.

I never had any experience with poltergeists so this was a shocking thing here, ya know?

I had no idea that they could grab you with their hands... I read that they could only move objects to harm you with... And I could feel his hand. I was gripping it with my shaking fingers, trying to get his hand off of me. So poltergeists were...Tangible? Was that possible after death?

I stared at him through my terrified eyes.

He was looking at my face carefully. That wasn't normal. Ever since I knew about this thing I had, I did as much research as I could on ghosts. It was actually rare for a poltergeist to let you see it… So what was wrong with this one? I was so scared I could barely take in a breath!

Wait… that might've been because he was squeezing my neck so tightly.

"Pl…ease…" I managed. "Let…me…GO!" He gripped tighter.

I winced under the pressure and decided I was going to die.

'_Wait...WHAT! DIE!_'I yelled to myself. I was so weak I couldn't fight. Not even a kick where it hurts… Even if he wasn't choking me so nastily, I think I would have been too scared to even move.

"Stop whinin', **kid. **It won't get you anywhere in your pathetic **mortal** life." He said in a cold, strangely taunting voice. I stared him in the eyes for a few moments before trying to speak. "Shut up." He commanded. Ouch… that hurt. My arms began falling down to my sides. I couldn't grip his arms any longer. "Listen, kid…Do you know a guy around here who--" There was a loud knock on the door. "Honey, are you okay? You've been in there for a while…" My mother said. "Curses…" He whispered. He released me and sprinted to my window. In one swift punch, he shattered the glass and was gone. Just like that. The small kitsune hopped out after him, giggling.

I slumped to the ground, gasping for precious oxygen.

The door opened so fast it nearly flew off its hinges. My mom was in here famous Karate-kick pose. "KAGOME!" She shouted. She ran over to me and dropped to her knees. "Oh, what happened!" She asked sounding very concerned. "I…I…was…" I panted. "It's alright…" She moved my hand from my neck and I saw her eyes widen.

"It's going to be just fine, Kagome. Don't be scared… Whoever did this to you is gone…" She said.

What was that supposed to mean? That scary poltergeist could come back whenever he wanted… He was searching for some guy, I knew that much. And for some reason, he suspected me to know him.

I leaned back onto the wall and closed my eyes. I was gaining my strength back fast.

"We can talk about this later, okay?" she said with a smile. I smiled weakly back at her.

I winked stupidly and pushed myself to my feet. I breathed in a fresh gulp of air and sighed it all out.

"Sure, mom…Sure…"

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"Your dinner's getting cold, Kagome!" My mother called to me. 

"One sec, mom! I'm talking to Eri!" I shouted back. I fixed my position on the couch.

White leather and OLD. It had been in my house before I was even **born**.  
I loved it, though.

"… He was a small thing? Like a…A Kitsune..? Is that what they're called?" I laughd.  
"Yeah. He was a Kitsune. Cute thing, too." I said smiling. My face changed to that of a murderer.  
'_A kid who ratted me out, too. I won't feel anymore guilt for scaring him in the bathroom..._'

Eri was the only person I completely trusted out of all my friends. She never told secrets and somehow knew me very well. She understood how I was feeling without me even having to say anything. So I told her about my ability several years ago. Somehow…Keeping that secret inside me with only my mom knowing was tough. I couldn't deal with it as a kid. I sighed. "Something wrong, Kagome?" She asked me.

"Oh, no! Uh…Why do you ask?" "Because of the way you're acting… You know you can tell me." I smiled and leaned back into the white leather couch.

"Yeah. But really. It's nothing." I never said I told her **everything**, did I?

"Okayyy…Listen, I've gotta go, Kagome. I'll talk to you later, hm?"

She was always so cheerful…

Having the ability to see the dead walking around changes you. It makes you more aware of death, but less afraid of it. Sometimes I'd think that I was supposed to be cheerful and hyper, like Eri, but I wasn't. I was always quiet in school and I never talked much. I was always drawing pictures of ghosts in class which pretty much caused uproar in my first school…

I transferred, and no problem! Most kids at my new school were gothic. So they thought I was ok.

"Sure, Eri. I'll see you tomorrow then?" "Yeah! Great! See ya, Kag." I raised an eyebrow. "ERI! I told you never to call me-" -**click-** "…that."

"Oy…" I dropped the phone on the couch and ran to the kitchen.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Mom." I grabbed a plate and served myself some delicious sushi and miso soup. One of my favorite meal combos of all time!

I knelt down and sighed. I grabbed some chop-sticks and a soup-spoon. Before I dug in, I felt the hairs rise on my neck. I looked up and glanced around. My eyes fell on my mother. She was staring at me. "Kagome…" She began. "You've been sighing a lot lately…" Silence followed.

"It's hard… isn't it?"

My eyes shined slightly with tears. I smiled. "Sometimes."

She still held her serious gaze. "I'm so sorry… I can't…" she blinked. "I can't relate to what you're going through in any way, Kagome. Please forgive me for that." I felt my mouth open.

Idiotically, I shook my head. "You don't ever have to feel bad. There's nothing you or anyone else can do about it. I don't need other people to feel what I'm feeling…"

I lowered my hands to my lap to hide them. They were shaking… I didn't understand why, so somehow, I was ashamed.

I suddenly remembered the poltergeist. I was so scared of him... I couldn't defend myself.  
I needed to work on my strength. Maybe work out?  
Maybe my mom was feeling guilty for not being there for me.

"I'm not really hungry, mom. I'll be in my room, kay?"

She hadn't smiled once. She didn't even nod. So I went upstairs.

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I plopped down on my bed. I glanced at my window with an amused smile. There was a large plank of wood covering the window. I grabbed my pillow and pushed it over my face. I felt terrible. Exhausted, sad, weak… need I go on? 

Then I sat up. My pillow bounced to the floor.

A breeze.

There was a breeze… a draft.

I swallowed.

I shifted my gaze towards the source of the strange chill.

My window... The plank of wood was on the ground. I swallowed the lump in my throat again.  
I didn't even hear it fall. I looked up, slowly.

There, perched on my windowsill, was the poltergeist.

He looked quite amused at my expression.

"Hello again." He said with a sinister smile.

His white dog ears shifted backwards slightly to catch some sound that my human ears could not. His golden eyes were burning with an emotion that I, at the time, could only describe as hatred. He certainly wasn't one of those scrawny types… He looked like he had worked out quite a bit when he was… alive. His black, short-sleeved shirt stretched over his torso like a glove. He had long-legged pants that were black also. They seemed to sort of bunch up at his bare feet. A thick chain hung around his neck with a small purple jewel attached to the front of it. A young face, too. He couldn't have been much older than me when he died...

I found myself pondering why on earth someone with such pretty white hair would wear black instead of his hair color. Then again, blondes don't wear yellow very often.

I held back my shudder. "What do you want with me?" I thought I sounded quite brave and confident! …Which is probably not how I sounded.

"I'm not sure… Your presence… I'm drawn here. Ya see, I'm looking for someone."

I nodded with a confused face. "And…?" He smirked and lowered his head. His eyes glared at me through his silver bangs. "And…I was wondering if you knew him."

I scrunched my nose up and glared back. "I don't know him! Whoever he is..!"

"Keh…He should stand out." I tilted my head slightly. "Stand…out…?"

"Yes, you fool. **Stand out**. Can't your human mind understand that!" He shouted in frusteration.

Man... No patience. What a total JERK.

My jaw dropped. Why was it that every time this jerk said something to smack me down, I just sat there! _"Well, you should describe him! Describe! Understand that!" _Is what I wanted to yell. In a cold tone… like his. "Well…Umm…how does he look..?" I stammered pathetically. His smirk faded and he scowled. "I've never actually seen him in person. I've read about him though. Dark hair… light eyes." Oh yah. That told me LOADS about this guy. "Uhmm... I'm afraid I will… need more information." I said meekly. Stupid. Stupid. **STUPID! **

He hopped off the window sill and crouched on the ground.

"In most stories and paintings, he has grey eyes and dark, long hair. That's all I know about his appearance, okay!" He snarled.

I nodded and gripped my covers.

"Any...Anything else that might help me..?" He started growling. _Growling!_

"He can see the dead. Ghosts. Spirits. Whatever."

"G…Ghosts?"

"**YES! GHOSTS! FOR THE CHOSEN'S SAKE, CAN'T YOU SPEAK THIS LANGUAGE!**"

"The chosen's…? Is that your God?" He stood, fangs bared and growling.

On any other day, I would've been screaming back at him, demanding some respect.  
But I didn't have anything to defend myself with... And, heh, he did.

I winced and searched for something to say. "Do...Do you know his name...?"

"Yeah." He said, mood changing. He seemed calmer at least...

"His name's Kagome."

I could almost feel my pupils growing small.

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_**Insane-san says:** They'll get longer. I feel like I'm reading like... Two pages of a childrens' book when I read this chapter. I added stuff to it and took away stuff. Like I said before, I wrote these about three months ago...I think... REVIEW PLEASE! WEEEEHEEHEEE!_


	3. III

_**Insane-san says: **Gosh... I'm so happy that people are reviewing. I LOVE REVIEWS.  
Well, here's another chapter! Oh, and be sure to check out my other fanfictions... AND REVIEW THOSE, TOO! MuwaaahahahhahaaaaCOUGHCOUGHchoke..._

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**P**eacock** F**eathers

**III**

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That was pretty funny… What an absurd coincidence, I was telling myself.

What a _scary_ coincidence…..

"Ya know," I cleared my throat and continued. "I…I can see ghosts…Well, obviously you know that…'Cause," I paused again, trying desperately to swallow the lump in my throat.

"**What?**" He barked. "No mortal can see spirits. **NONE**. So don't you _dare_ come off acting like you, a wimpy human **GIRL** can see the dead." Kagome winced. Ouch. That hurt. But he was wrong. What a fool… the poor poltergeist didn't even know he was dead. "Listen, I hate to tell you, but… I _can_ see ghosts. Ask anyone. Ask one of your little ghost friends! Oh, pardon. I forgot that poltergeists don't have friends…" My mind wandered after I said that to the little kitsune boy...

What relation did they have with eachother? Poltergeists were usually loners...

His teeth clenched and I saw his eyelid begin to twitch.

"Y-you..are.. You're crazy! Dangit. And I was sensing all this energy from here too… Maybe in the next house over..but.. I'm never wrong! Still… GAAAH!"  
His back was turned and his hands swung up to grip the top of his head. His clawed fingers raked through his silver hair and he appeared to be arguing with himself.

I slowly made my way off of my bed. I had to get away… Get out of my room. To my mother. …Well that was stupid. My mother didn't have the slightest bit of spiritual energy. She couldn't protect me. But my child instinct urged me to go to my mom.

Finally standing on the ground, I turned and bolted.

I slammed the door behind me, which was dumb considering that ghosts could go through walls. I screamed as loud as I could. Perhaps to alert my mother that I was in danger. I heard my door open and I gripped onto the railing on the stairs. I swung myself onto it and slid down. My mother immediately came into view. '_Thank you._' I said to myself. '_Thank you mother..._' She had a panicked look on her face. "What—OH MY GOD!" I landed on the ground at her feet and she moved protectively in front of me.

"What do you want?" She said warily.

I sighed and smiled. I was safe. She would help me…

Suddenly, my eyes snapped open and I lost my breath. "Mother…You can…?"

"Hush, Kagome." She whispered. "I will ask you again, demon, **what do you want**?"

He smirked. I pearl-white fang gripped onto his bottom lip. He lowered one of his eyebrows. "I want to know where the Chosen is."

Silence filled the house and still my mother stood there with her arms spread apart.

"The… Chosen." She whispered. "The Chosen…" I couldn't see my mother's face from the position I was in, but I could see that she was shaking slightly.

"Yes. The Chosen. And I won't stop raiding this house until I find him. He's around this house…somewhere. I've decided that much. You see," He suddenly leapt halfway down the stairs in one swift motion. I slammed myself up against the wall on reflex.

My mother, on the other hand, hadn't even flinched.

This made me feel weaker than you can imagine.

His ears turned sideways and he lowered his eyebrows, and suddenly, he had become serious-looking.

"I was trained all my life to fight in ways that humans have never even heard of. I can see the aura of a flea just by looking at it…" He took a step down. "So, imagine my problem, if you can…"

Another step.

"I was trained all my life to find the aura of a person I have never seen before. And all who had seen him have long since perished. So I was trained by men who hadn't seen him either. They were teaching me from how they themselves were taught."

Five steps.

"It was always described to me...The aura... As huge. Massive." His eyes became strangely vacant as he stared at the wall. "Something I would only know when I had seen it… Something containing so much power that at first…I would be afraid."

He took his last step down. "So imagine my plight when I come here…After countless months of searching this forsaken planet for this gigantic aura… That the largest one I have seen is mixing around stupidly in this house. It doesn't seem to belong to anything. It's just floating. This large amount… And the most I can see from where I'm standing is clinging to…" He reached out and arm and gripped my mother's shoulder. '_Mom!_' I screamed to myself. He moved her aside and looked down at me with a sort of disgusted expression. "You."

I slowly reached a hand up to clench my chest and felt my heart skip a beat.

"…….Me...?" My heart pounded deafeningly in my head as I stared at him.

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_**Insane-san says:** Oh, poo. Another short cliffie. -smirk- Review and maybe I'll update again real soon... 'Till then, little sweeties!

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	4. IV

_**Insane-san says: **I had a heck of a time trying to find this... I didn't save it with the rest of the chapters so I was so screwed up and I didn't remember where it was and I couldn't figure out where I put it... I thought 'Maybe I didn't save it?' But I did...I just couldn't find it..hah... Well, I found it... I added tons to it and changed stuff... After this one, I'll have to write more instead of pulling them out of my saved documents. Oh, goody.. COUGHsarcasmCOUGH. Reviews please!

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**IV**

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I slowly reached a hand up to clench my chest and felt my heart skip a beat. 

"...Me...?" My heart pounded deafeningly as I stared at him.

"Yes. You." He smirked in a sickly manner and rubbed two fingers against his forehead.  
"I can't understand this…at all. After all my training…" He glanced to the ground with something that looked like disappointment in his eyes. "After all my training, I can't even find the Chosen. After all my training, the person with the largest aura on the planet is a timid little girl who claims she can see ghosts. Heh…Heheha...What a joke this is…" He put on a grin and his eyes narrowed menacingly. He was angry at something. Something that I didn't understand. His arms tensed up and he shook with rage. 

"Kagome, come over here." My mother said to me. She motioned for me with her pale hand. The minute she said that, I saw movement in the corner of my left eye. I looked to the boy.

His head shot around to look at me. His eyes were wide open and his jaw was slack. His silver hair swayed around him from the sudden movement.

"Your name is...Kagome?" He said breathlessly.

I stared at him, afraid. Shocked, I think. And sick.

"Yes." I said, hands trembling.

His eyes jerked to the side shakily. He was staring at something.

Then to the right. He went in a full circle. Just looking around. Then he shot his head back to me. I stood up suddenly... My whole body got tingly and I really thought I was going to throw up.

"It's…." he stumbled backward onto the staircase. "It's all…All of it is…"

He shook his head in disbelief.

"It can't be…It **can't be**! This is all** WRONG**!" He yelled.

An odd sense of strength was working its way into me. I smiled. It felt good.

No…It felt great.

Mmmm...Actually...Not so good. My stomach churned and I gagged.  
Nothing came up, thankfully.

"Stop yelling and tell me what's wrong." My mother said. She was pretty strict-sounding.

"All of the fragments of aura are… flocking to you." He stared at me.  
"It's… It's all going to you. **YOU**!"

I began to think about why this would be. Then it struck me.

I was the Chosen. DUH! The Chosen wasn't a guy, but a girl!

"So I am… I am the Chosen?" I said confusedly.

He was breathing rapidly and shaking his head, still in denial.

"No…No, not you…Not you…"

What was so bad about me, I was asking myself?

"The Chosen is a **male**! Males are stronger that females! And he's a **demon**! **He's not mortal!** He's not! No mortal could be so powerful! **NO! HE IS NOT YOU!**"

I glared at him and crossed my arms. I was feeling alot stronger... I could take him if he came at me...

Hah..HAHAAHA. I remember thinking that.

"What's your problem?" I asked. He pointed an angry claw at me.

"**IF YOU THINK I'M GONNA PROTECT YOU, YOUR FRICKIN NUTS!**"

"LISTEN!" I shouted. He suddenly recoiled onto the stairs. "Just tell me what's going on!"

He got his arrogance back and growled at me. "You need to come with me. That's what's goin' on."

He turned his back on me. He whipped back around and glared at my mother. "You won't be seeing her for a while. Maybe never again." He said in a cocky voice. "Say goodbye, _Chosen_." He mocked.

What a jerk!

"HAH! As if..." I said. "Kagome..." I looked up at my mother. "Yeah, mom?"

"You...must go." I felt all the life drain out of me. "N-no...Mom...No. I don't have to."

"Kagome, from the moment you were born, I knew this day would come...I used to have dreams about this every night. I always knew."

I felt a sort of psychotic smile come to my face. "But...But...He's...Dead, mother. He's dead."

I heard the demon boy let out a loud laugh. "DEAD! You stupid wench..." He growled with amusement. "I'm as alive as you are." He bared his fangs at me. I shuddered.

"Kagome...Please. You must go. Remember that...I will always love you."

"MOM!" I screamed. "CUT IT OUT!" I wanted to wake up. She was just going to abandon me then! How could she? She was my mother!

She came over and hugged me and kissed my cheek several times. My eyes burned.

"I...I'm so sorry, Kagome. I love you so much. I'll help you pack up some of your things--"

"I assure you," The demon butted in. "That she will be well looked after once we reach our destination." His voice was almost…well, it was nasty. I didn't appreciate him using that tone with my mother. It was like he was speaking to her as if she were stupid.

"Yes, well… I hadn't thought of that…" She laughed lightly and wiped tears from her eyes.

"Please take care of her."

"KEH!"

"Why, you...!" I began. "Kagome, please! No...I love you, Kagome. Goodbye." My mother said.

"Oh don't attack the ten-times better than you demon, Kagome! Goodbye, Kagome!" The demon said, mimicking my mother's voice. "For crap's sake, you're gonna make me sick." He mumbled.

The demon turned and motioned for me to follow him.

I looked back at my mother one more time. "So, I'm really going then, mother?" I said lowly.

Her back was facing me.

No words could describe the anger...The betrayal I felt then... My mother had left me.

I forced a smile. "Bye, **mom**."

"Gaaah, hurry up you sentimental WITCH!" He shouted back at me.

"Coming!" I yelled angrily. I walked towards him. He stood in front of the sliding door. I stood behind him.

I sighed. "Hey, are you gonna open the door?" I asked in a tired voice.

"Open it?" He asked with a grin. "Sure. I'll **open** it." He brought his leg up and slammed his bare foot against the door. He kicked it right down. It smashed against the floor with a disturbing CRACK.

I winced. Oh well. It wasn't like I was going to have to fix it...

"Don't you have any manners?" I shouted. He stared boredly as we walked out into my backyard.

"Hmm.. What're those?" He asked. I glared at his back.

This was gonna be some journey...

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_**Insane-san says:** Woot! Another chapter done! I'll probably have another one up tomorrow...But that depends if I get any reviews! PLEASE REVIEW! You people are what keep me going! -sob-

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	5. V

**_Insane-san says: _**_Hohohohoho...Another chapter. What a quick updatererer I am! -giddy smile- Thanks to all the reviewers out there. You really make it all worth while... OH! And I'd like to thank my manager, and my mom, and my fans, and--

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**V**

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I followed the jerk to the middle of my backyard. What we were to do there, I had no idea.

The large Oak trees surrounded me like a warm blanket. They were so familiar. I had been surrounded by them all my life. I was born in this house. I was raised right here, on this large plot of land. The sunflowers that I planted when I was young never died. They were standing tall near the fence. That cold, black fence… How many times had I fallen onto it while climbing the trees? I couldn't count.

The wet sand beneath me caked around my shoes It was a stormy night and I was breathing in the cool air.  
It smelled so fresh and wet… I was so scared thinking about how I might never see my home again.

And my mother... Well... I didn't want to think about her at all. What about school?

'_This sucks._' I whispered in my head.

Inuyasha grabbed that little crystal from the thick chain around his neck I was about to ask him what it was when I heard him let out a sick laugh. I blinked and tilted my head, eyes narrowing in confusion.

"You really are…aren't you?" He said with a smirk. His silver bangs hid his eyes.

I was still confused.

"The sunflowers are alive." My eyes widened. "It's autumn…" He drawled out.

"Yeah… Well, I water them every day and make sure that-" He laughed again.  
I blushed in a strange, confused embarrassment.  
"Sunflowers can only grow in late spring and in summer. TLC has nothing to do with it, _Chosen_."  
I took a step forward to look closer at my flowers.

"You made them grow. You kept them alive. All this time… When did you plant them?"

He glanced at me, one golden eye visible. "When…I was five or six." I said quietly.

"Keh…It figures…"  
"What figures?"  
"I don't need to tell you, _Chosen_." The way he always sort of said 'chosen' in a mocking voice ticked me off.

"You can call me Kagome you know… I don't mind, honest."  
He could've at least made me feel better about everything by using my name.

"No." He said flatly. I blinked and raised an eyebrow. "Why in the world not?" I asked.

He slid a claw down the crystal. "'Cause..." He said quietly.

'_Hmm..._' I was thinking to myself. '_Maybe it would be sort of disrespectful? HAH! I can hold that above his head at least..._'

"'Cause that would be closer-sounding than 'Chosen'. I NEVER want to be close to someone so disgusting..." His voice dripped with spite.

I blushed with anger and clenched my teeth in my mouth. '_Deep breathes...Deep breathes, Kagome..._' I comforted myself.

When I looked back up, I found him staring at me with an entertained grin. My mouth opened in shock. "You..!" I started angrily.

"Save your breath. You'll need it, idiot."

'_Cocky little..._' I watched him stroke the crystal with his thumb. I felt serious all of a sudden...

"Is it...Too late to go back inside?" I held my stomach with a hand, trying to comfort the butterflies that thrashed about.

"You never had a choice to begin with, Chosen."  
Awkward…hmm…yes… That was pretty dumb. But…Strangely reasonable.  
"By the way, are you motion sickness?" He asked. I shook my head.  
"Good. Less mess when we go back." He stared at me with a psychotic face, grinning. My face paled and sweat came down my cheek.  
He turned his face away from me. He took a deep breath.

"**SHIPPO!**" He screamed into the black of the night. I jumped back in surprise and let out a cry.

A few moments after he yelled, something very small bounced up on the demon boy's back. "Is it time?" A small boyish voice asked.  
"Shut up and get off me, runt." He said, smacking him off.. The little boy whined and rubbed his head.

I gasped quietly and pointed. "It's the kitsune boy from before!" I blurted out stupidly.

The kitsune closed his eyes and crossed his arms. I smiled. "Hah! So you think you're better than me?" I asked.

No response. I knelt down. "You're a cute little guy, ya know." He opened his eyes and stared at me.  
"What's your name, huh?" I asked warmly. His green eyes got all big and wet. "Shippo..." He sniffled.  
I frowned. "What's wrong, Shippo?" Tears poured out of his eyes. "He's always so mean to me...!"  
He started full-out crying."AWWW! It's okay!" I picked him up and hugged him. His little fox legs kicked around as he cried.  
"I'm Kagome. If he bothers you anymore, you just tell me, okay, Shippo?"

He nodded and hugged me back. I let him down and pat him on his head. He turned and hopped over to the dog boy and stood at his heels. '_Hmmm... Even though he's really mean to the little kid, Shippo seems to like him... I wonder why?_' I thought to myself.

There was obviously NOTHING to like...

Then suddenly it occured to me.

"Hey, where is it that we're going exactly…?"

"Home." The dog demon said. "Home?" I echoed. "Where's that?" I asked. He chuckled. He lowered an arm. Shippo jumped up on it and climbed onto his shoulder. Shippo hugged onto his arm tightly. I stumbled forward realizing we were gonna leave.

"Don't you dare slap me." He hissed to me.

"Hm? Why would--" With such speed, he wrapped his arms around me. "WHAT ARE YOU--"

He then chanted something. It was in a different language that I had never in my life heard before. He chanted over and over and over again. Was it Russian? I didn't know. Suddenly, a great, darkish purple blackish beam shot up from the crystal.  
It hit the sky and spread. It was like it exploded… I was stunned. My jaw dropped.

Unable to speak, I stared. It began coming down. It was coming straight for us.

I got scared… Real scared. I actually hugged onto the demon for protection.

What were we to do? How were we going to get away from this thing?

Then it hit us.

All I can remember from that moment was pressure. Such pressure and spinning.

I thought I was going to implode. I was screaming. It hurt badly and I was so afraid… That's all I can remember.

Then as quickly as it had come, the pain was gone.

I saw light. The light of the sun… I saw us hugging eachother and blushed with a loud gasp of shock.  
"What do you think you're doing!" I was sooo groggy…I thought I was going to be sick. I didn't even know if I said that out loud.

For a split second, I heard a deafening noise. It was a screeching sort of sound.

My face distorted from the sound. It cut into my eardrum.

I was about to cry out in pain from the ringing left over from the noise when…

There was this rush. I heard wind…Loud wind. Then it stopped.

Everything was silent. Or was it loud? I couldn't hear my own breathing.

At a shocking quickness, we were blasted with air. The wind shot us and blew upwards so hard that out hair went flying up.  
Shippo's legs went up in the air. He was screaming or laughing... I couldn't tell. His little hands gripped onto the boy's sleeve hard.

If that dog demon hadn't been holding onto me with planted feet, I would've gone flying up into the great blue. Straight up and out of sight. I looked at his face. He was very calm. Almost bored. Waiting for it to be over...

The wind pushed my eyes and made them water immensely The tears rolled up my cheeks and were carried up into the sky by the wind.  
I screamed really loud. Looking back, that was pretty embarrassing. I could see the green trees around us flailing and swaying about from the wind. I couldn't hear them, though. The wind was so loud… I decided that this was how it sounded and felt like to be in a tornado…

Then it stopped. It faded and was gone, just like that. Our hair settled and our clothes dropped and stopped rustling around.

Inuyasha let go of me and let go of the crystal.

I stood there in pure awe, fear, sickness and shock. I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. I looked at the demon boy's hand.

It was bleeding from holding onto the crystal. Instinct took over. "Are you okay? Your hand..."

"Leave me alone." He said lightly, waving his hand in the air.

Then something wet hit my arm. I looked up at the sky. Not one cloud…

Then…the water…?

Another drop hit my cheek. I winced and closed an eye.

"What is…" then more came down. They landed on the grass and on my clothes and my skin…

"Hey...!"

"They're your tears." He said walking away.

My eyes bolted open.

"Holy…"

….

"**CRAAAAAAAAP!** THAT IS THE **COOLEST** THING! **AAAHAHAHA!**"

He stared at me in astonishment. Like I was insane. VERY insane.

"OH MY GOSH! AAAHAHAH! I THOUGHT WE WERE GOING TO **DIIIEEE**!"

I dropped to my knees, crying from laughter.

Then my grin turned to a frown and I hugged my knees. I pressed my face against my knees and started crying really hard.  
I rocked myself back and forth on the ground shaking my head. I didn't want this to happen anymore... I wanted to go home.  
Why was this happening to me? What right did everyone have to toss me around like a toy?

Minutes past and he just stood there cracking his knuckles and waiting.

Once I finally settled down, I stood. I shuddered and smeared the tears off my face with the backs of my hands.

"Thanks for the comfort." I said coldly. I narrowed my eyes and walked towards him.

"Hey, it's your problem. Not mine. Got that?" He crossed his arms and glared ahead of him. He picked Shippo off his shoulder and THREW him in the ground. "You can walk from here, little brat. What are ya, TWO?" Shippo shook himself off and walked.

"Follow me." With that, he turned and began to walk down the steep, grassy hill.

I took a deep breath and followed him. I tripped and stumbled down the hill watching HIM walk down with ease.

I muttered curses at him in my head. "Hey!" I called. "What now?" He whined. "Want your blankeyyy?" He cooed.  
I shook with anger. "NO! I just...AH." I tripped over a rock and fell on my knees. I groaned and stood back up.  
"I just wanted to know your name." I slapped the wet blades of grass off my knees and walked after him.

He let out a loud sigh and cracked his neck. He quickened his pace.

"Inuyasha!" He answered back to me. "Heheh..What kind of parent names their kid-" A rather large stone whizzed past my face.

A bead of sweat rolled down my chin. I looked at Inuyasha. He shot and angry smirk at me. "Watch yourself, **Chosen**." He growled.

A chill shook down my spine as we continued. "YOU CAN'T JUST THROW ROCKS AT PEOPLE!" I yelled at him.

He ignored me completely.

'_I'll learn how to handle you sooner or later, Inuyasha._' I assured myself. I nodded and trotted behind the two demons.

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_**Insane-san says:** Writing fanfictions is hard! o.O; Please review...I mean it. Really. Down there...You can review. Do it. Now.

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	6. VI

_**Insane-san says: **I am soooo happy that people like this story... Just make sure you go and read my other fanfictions and review those, too... -breaks out in song for no reason- OH! Oh my gosh I wanted to do this last night... Now, in every chapter in my little A.N.s, I'm going to put a random fact about me. WEEEDLE DEE! Huzzah! Here's the first one!_

_**Random fact: **Pasta is my most favorite food._

_...On second thought, that sucks _and_ it's really lame. o.o; I'll never do it again.  
Remember to please review at the end of this chapter. DON'T BE LAZY! Thank you! Love ya! Bye bye!

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**VI**

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I was breathing really hard now... They both kept getting faster and faster. I knew I must've just been slowing them down...

But whatever! I was the CHOSEN and all of that... Shouldn't I get like... A decorated elephant to ride or something?

Or... "H..EY!" My dry throat made my voice crack. I covered my mouth with a sweaty hand and coughed "Inuyasha! Don't you think we'd get to wherever we're going faster if I ride on your back or something?" I shouted to him '_Wow...They're pretty far ahead now..._' I coughed. "Don't you think we'd get to wherever we're going faster if you actually walk, maybe?" He said sarcastically to me. I narrowed my eyes. "Stop talking-" Cough cough! "To me that way!" I swallowed and tried to douse my burning throat with my saliva only to find that I didn't have any. My eyes watered and I smeared sweat off my face. It was REALLY hot here... The grass turned into sand a while back.

At first, it was cool and nice. The trees swayed in the wind and the air was cool. The grass was wet and flowers were poking up here and there... Then...The further we went, the hotter it got. Soon, the grass was blotched with sand. Then, there was no grass at all. The sun burned against my skin and the cool air was completely gone. Hills of sand were everywhere. We were in the middle of a stupid desert and I was hot and sweaty and wanted to jump in a pool.

I rubbed three fingers on my neck where my throat was, trying to somehow soothe it. Sweat blurred my vision. The heat weighed down on me. I squinted and glared up at the sun, silently cursing it. I wasn't even lifting my feet anymore. They were just sort of pushing against the sand as I moved forwards. I tore the legs of my jeans off hours ago and I had draped my grey sweat-shirt over my head. My blue tank-top was soaked with sweat and my hiking boots were filled to the brim with sand. I turned my head towards Inuyasha's direction _way_ up there...

"WHAT GOOD WILL I BE TO YOU IF I'M **DEAD** WHEN WE GET THERE?" I screeched, suddenly the feeling of exhaustion embraced me tightly. I heard him groan loudly. "You're drivin' me MAD, WOMAN! It's only four more miles! And if you weren't so bloody slow, we'd be there by now!" He screamed back at me.

"Four...More...Miles..." Those words smashed my head like a hammer.

I closed my eyes. Then... My legs stopped working. My whole body stopped working actually...I felt myself falling. My senses dulled.  
When I felt that hot sand crunch against my knees, it sounded like it was so far away... It echoed around in my ears, sounding strange and muffled. I felt the hot air crush my throat as I fell forward onto the sand. I could feel the grains of it in my mouth, but I didn't care. I couldn't breathe anymore. I couldn't think. I just laid there making some sort of rasping noise...

Suddenly, the sun was blocked. A shade was over me. A shadow. I used my last ounce of strength to look up.

Inuyasha stood over me, looking down. I watched his eyes close half-way. I saw him sigh, but I couldn't hear it.

He sat on his heels beside me. Then...Everything was gone.

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To this day, I still don't know how long I was out. But when I opened my eyes, there was no more sand.

Instead, all of the hot, burning ground was replaced by _ice_. It took me a few moments to realize that I was shivering with cold. I blinked and felt my senses coming back to me. I licked my lips. My tongue was met with frost. I felt my stomach pounding with the ache of hunger and harsh, cold wind blared against my ears. My grey sweat-shirt was back on me. I silently wished I hadn't torn off the legs of my jeans back in thedesert. My back was cold, but the front of me was warm. I was thinking of why this could be when I saw black in the white of the snow. Someone's shirt... I looked to where my hands were. I was clenching with desperation onto someone's shoulders. My jaw quivered as I shook. The cold was horrible. Possibly worse than the heat.

It took me a few minutes, but I came to the conclusion that I was on Inuyasha's back. He was carrying me through the whipping snow. Running so fast... I remember the shock of seeing someone run so fast. '_Inuyasha's...THIS amazing...?_' I found myself wondering.

I saw the top of Shippo's head. He was inside Inuyasha's shirt, sleeping.

I thought about how he was carrying both me and Shippo in this hideously freezing weather with no shoes and no sleeves.

Heh...The jerk who didn't care.

I smiled weakly. "Thank you." I whispered. If he replied, I didn't hear it. I closed my eyes once more.

After what felt like hours and hours, my body stopped shaking. The air was warming and it stopped snowing. Still, Inuyasha continued running. Tall blades of grass were poking up through the snow, now. Then the snow was gone. Lush, green fields of grass... The air was so nice. It wasn't hot, it wasn't cold... I breathed it in. Without even thinking about it, I grabbed a lock of Inuyasha's flying hair and twirled my fingers through it, feeling so happy that we were out of there.

"Stop that." He snapped.

I wrinkled my nose with a smile and let it go. I watched it fly back with the rest of his silvery-white hair.  
'_Patience is a virtue, Kagome._' I said to myself.

Never in my life had I seen a boy with such long hair... It was strangley refreshing. Sort of wild, too. '_What am I thinking now?_' I sighed.

"And you better be quiet around here..." He looked back at me with narrowed eyes.

"Shippo, yer tail's itching me. Can't you run from here?" He asked suddenly. "Fine..." Shippo said reluctantly. I smiled sympathetically as I watched Shippo jump off. Then, to my pure amazement, a pink cloud of smoke erupted from Shippo. When the smoke cleared, Shippo wasn't running there. Instead, there was a rather odd-looking cheetah. I gasped and stared. "Shippo...?" I breathed. I watched the cheetah look up at me with a grin. "It's me, alright!" He said.  
I grinned. '_How cool!_' I gasped to myself. "WOW! Shippo, you're cool!" I grinned.

"KEH! He is NOT cool. Turning into something that looks barely close to what a cat's supposed to look like is NOT amazing."

"You can't talk down to a child that way! He's only a little kid. I don't see YOU turning into anything!"

I heard him muttering under his breath. Then I smiled. "Oh, I see. You're jealous, aren't you?" His ears twitched when I said 'jealous'. He let out a loud laugh. "There's no comparison when it comes to me and Shippo." He said in a cocky voice. I glared at the back of his head. "Ya know, you're right! Shippo's TEN times better than you, dog-boy." Shippo giggled loudly. I smiled, glad that he was amused at his bully being bullied for a change. "You need to learn how to handle children, Inuyasha." I said calmly.

"I know how to handle kids! Don't you even think I don't." He snarled. "Oh yeah? Tell me then. What do you know? How do you discipline a child when it's done something bad? And what do you do when a child gets hurt?" I asked, poking his shoulder.

"One," He started. "You punch 'im over the head a few times and call 'im a stupid idiot." My jaw dropped.  
"Two," He continued. "Tell 'im to shut the heck up and quit bein' such a cry-baby LOSER." He snorted and nodded once.

"WHAT!" I screamed. "You know NOTHING!" I screamed again. "You know, I feel sorry for you, Inuyasha." I sighed and closed my eyes. "You'll never get a wife this way...What kind of woman wants a husband who abuses and mis-treats his children?" I laughed. "Not me."

"WHO THE HECK SAID I WANT TO MARRY **YOU**?" He roared. I nearly fell off his back.

"I didn't say that! I only said that I wouldn't want you as a husband! I never said you wanted ME!" I yelled. I heard Shippo laughing REALLY hard in the background.

"Oh yeah? Well..." I felt him shaking with anger under me. "You'll want me sooner or later. They ALL do..."

I was appalled.

"Oh..They ALL do, HUH? Rest assured, I will NEVER want YOU. How could I like a jerky, arrogant, over-proud, egotistical DOG?" I shrieked.

"You...YOU..!" He was running faster by the second.

"THAT'S GREAT!" His voice echoed through the trees. "Because how could I want you...An annoying, self-centered, cry-baby, whining, weak, slow, noisy, bony, ugly, stupid, idiotic WENCH to like ME!" He shouted. To my horror, there was more to what he wanted to say.

And with each insult, my blood pumped harder and faster.

"You're a dumb, foul-smelling, human WITCH and **I HATE YOU!** I should've killed you back in the dessert!"

"I HATE YOU EVEN MORE!" I screamed in his ear. He let out a cry and grabbed his ear.

I pushed myself off him and landed on my feet. Shooting an arm up, I pointed at him. "I won't go any further!" I said dangerously.

Rubbing his ear, he began to turn around. "HEH! You weren't going anywhere! I--" When he faced me completely, his shoulders dropped. His hand came forward off his ear and landed at his side. He stared. "...Was..." He finished quietly.

"WHAT?" I shouted at him."Is there something on my face?" I narrowed my eyes. '_What in the world am I DOING?_ _This is no way to act! No way to act at all! My mother raised me better than this...Where did my patience go?_' I sighed and released my anger.

I opened my mouth to apologize to him when..I felt..

Hot breath on the back of my head...

Every single hair on my body stood on-end.

"What...Is..." My hands shook. My eyes widened with fear and I stared at Inuyasha. I heard a grunt from behind me.

Something...Was..._Smelling_ me.

Shippo was so scared, he popped back into his original form.

"I told you," Inuyasha whispered. "To be quiet around here...Didn't I?" He whispered in an angry tone.  
That look of pure terror still clung to my face. "ME be quiet...? You were yelling too." I hissed out in a whisper.

"Listen..." He whispered. "Don't...Move." My whole body was trembling. I stared at Inuyasha. My eyes pleaded for help.  
"It's a-" The creature snorted loudly and continued to move its huge noise around the back of my head, sniffing.

"It's a Rupture Wolf..." He spoke so quietly, I could barely hear him. I barely nodded my head.

"Why is it called a Rupture Wolf...?" I asked bravely. Inuyasha stared and tensed into a battle stance.

"You don't wanna find out..." He whispered. I shuddered and close my eyes. Beads of sweat streamed down my face.

I felt it's large, slimy tongue scrape against the backs of my legs. My face contorted and I screamed. Loud and terrified.

My voice was immediately drowned out by the Wolf's deafening roar.

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_**Insane-san says: **Ooooh! The suspense tingles! -grin- Review now, please. Go on, now. And no cussing at the author!

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	7. VII

_**Insane-san says:** Well, I've been reading tons of Naruto manga so I haven't been my speedy self lately. o.o; In any event, I'm leaving in early August for a vacation so there might be another chunk where the updating slows down...At least you have this chapter before I leave. Review at the end! No reviews equals no chapters, people. I wait longer to update for my reviews to come in. I've had a cup of espresso and I got my PJs on. Let the battle scene comense! ...heh...  
_

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**VII**

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My mind was completely blank.

I was waiting to be 'ruptured'.

Never in my life had I felt such fear.

Then I heard Inuyasha let out a cry of fury as he jumped over my head. I whipped around. He slashed his arms down with great speed at the massive wolf-monster. The wolf back-flipped with a howl and dodged the blow with ease. My mouth opened to let out a silent scream.

It was huge.

Grey and brown shaggy, matted fur covered its body. Large yellowish teeth hung out of its lips as it growled loudly, like a motor boat. It was standing on its hind legs. Its front paws were more like hands. Its purple claws were quivering with anger. Then, it looked at me. Blood-shot yellow eyes met mine.

And it smiled.

My hands clapped over my mouth and I couldn't feel my legs anymore.

'_I have to do something... I have to do something! I have to do somthing or..._'

I stumbled backwards.

'_OR I'M GONNA DIE HERE!_' I did someting stupid, then.

I ran at it. Hah...Really fast. Something snapped inside of me. I understood now what it really meant to be "fighting for your life".

It ran to meet me, dropping on four legs. I saw Inuyasha jump on its wide back. He plunged a fist through its shoulder. Blood shot up and splattered over Inuyasha's face and black shirt. The Rupture Wolf bucked and Inuyasha bounced up into the air. He almost fell off the creature, but he managed to get a firm grip on some hair on its leg. He then shouted something. When he swiped his claws down, what looked like electricity shot out of his hands. Stringy, jagged beams of yellow light. The leg that Inuyasha was holding onto was cut clean off.

The wolf threw its massive head up into the air with a loud whine of pain and anguish.

But somehow, it kept its balance. After falling with the wolf's leg, Inuyasha was running after it. I think I stopped a while back, but anyway, I was now holding onto a pretty big rock. I'd be darned if I was gonna let that cocky jerk get all the glory of victory. I raised my arm and aimed for the wolf's head.

"HA!" I said as I threw it. The rock went flying through the air.

And then...to my utter amazement...

It hit Inuyasha's head instead.

His eyes closed and he crumpled to the ground.

I threw my hands up and gripped onto my hair.

"CRAAAP!" I screamed. Heck, now the best I had was to run for my life, screaming.

But what about the other two? Shippo was trying to camouflage as a twig in a tall tree, and Inuyasha lie defeated on the ground.

"God, I am so dead." I said out-loud to myself.

Unimaginable ammounts of blood went pouring out of the wolf's shoulder.

It stood there on its three legs and growled at me with its head lowered. I swallowed the lump in my throat and narrowed my eyes at it. '_I will not die here..._' I assured myself. I thought for a second that maybe it would suddenly die of blood-loss. Sadly, that was not to be.

It pounded the ground as it ran towards me.  
My blood was rushing through my body. Cold sweat tried to blind me. My legs wouldn't move. It grew closer and closer. I knew it was going faster than anything I had seen besides Inuyasha, but it seemed like it took forever for it to get in front of me. It opened its mouth to reveal its jagged fangs as it let out a vicious roar. A roar of death. The last thing I would hear before I died. And the last thing I would think would be '_Thanks alot, mommy._'

I closed my eyes as tightly as I could. In human instinct, I threw my arms forward as if to block it from hurting me. I slammed my teeth together. My stomach churned and I gasped, waiting.

Then it cried out. It yelped, squealed and screamed. Its howls echoed all around me. It suddenly made a gagging noise and then all was silent.

**THUDDDD.**

The ground shook hard underneath my feet. So hard, that I almost lost my balance. Something heavy just hit the earth. I opened a shaky eye. I moved it forward and saw the wolf's body in the dirt. My other eye grew brave and opened as well. The middle of the animal's body was almost all gone. Something blew a massive hole in it.

I smiled and gasped and panted. I bent over to grasp my knees. I shook with a gasping laugh and looked up. My body trembled like crazy. I took in large breathes and laughed dryly again.

"Oh, Inu..Inuyasha!" I managed.

"I thought..hah..hah..I thought we were dead! I..hah..I thought..." I swallowed to try and wet my dry throat. I looked up, still smiling and I saw.. I saw Inuyasha still on the ground.

My eyes felt as though they had tightened with confusion. I raised an eyebrow high up.

I let go of my knees and allowed myself to stand up straight. Maybe using that much strength and energy was really tiring? Poor guy! But then..

I saw the rock I threw at him next to his head, right where it had been when I hit him.

I looked around the wolf's body. There weren't any "pieces" of it anywhere. The only blood I could see was the blood still coming from its shoulder where Inuyasha cut its arm off.  
A dry sob erupted from my mouth out of nowhere. I bit my quivering lip. Who did this? The thought of someone stronger than Inuyasha being here by me made my insides turn ice-cold. It was a thought scarier than the Rupture Wolf.

I turned in circles over and over again, searching for this person...The only other person I could ever see was Shippo in that tree. He couldn't have done this..He was sitting there with a little clawed finger pointing straight at the wolf in amazement and something like fear.

It just felt like nothing in the world made sense anymore...

My head gave a sudden spin and I dropped to my knees. I wrapped my arms around my stomach and stared at Inuyasha. There was such a strong need for him to be next to me at that moment..He lived here. He knew things. He tried to protect me. Certainly he knew what sort of demon could be capable of such a strange attack.

I let out a pitiful moan and shook my head.

"Oh, God.." I whined quietly. "Don't let it be...Don't let it be me who did this..." I shook my head. "I'm a weapon, that's what I am!" I screamed into the sky. "The Chosen..." I said bitterly.

"It's okay, Kagome." Shippo called to me. I saw that he was crying.  
"...This isn't normal." I whispered. Then I cracked out a laugh. "But I'm not normal, am I? No..."  
I sighed. "No wonder he hates me so much...He's so jealous of my power...I can't believe it."  
I smiled. "I'm this strong?"

Frightening disbelief turned unto something hilarious and entertaining.

"If I knew I had such powers, I wouldn't have been picked on so much way-back-when..."

I tried to get my focus back.

"That was the scaries thing that ever happened to me!" I shouted at Shippo with a grin.  
Then I gasped. "Oh my gosh! Inuyasha!" I ran towards him, eager to help.

"Hey, girlie." An evil voice said behind me. I stopped and felt my mouth open.

Then I smiled. I turned around.

"Yes?" I said, rather cheerfully. I could take this punk...

"You kill my wolf?" The boy said, smirking. Sharp blue eyes stared into me. My face burned.

I crossed my arms. "And what if I did?" I asked bravely. He grinned and narrowed his eyes to slits. "Hah...ahahahha..." He shook his head.

"AAHAHAHHAHAHAAAHAHAHA!" He exploded in laughter.

"What if you did, huh?" He chuckled. "If you did..." He snapped his fingers. Wolves of all sizes walked out of the woods around him.

"I'm gonna mess you up!" He smiled warmly.

"WHAT!" I screamed. "MORE WOLVES?" They weren't nearly as large as the Rupture Wolf, but they were scary enough...and...Strength in numbers, so...

I swallowed. "Why me?" I asked myself in a whisper.

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_**Insane-san says: **GOSH I loved that chapter.. **REVIEW NOW PLEASE!** And goodbye until a few weeks! Love you my darling readers! -kissy-

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	8. VIII

_**Insane-san says: **I have returned! I had a blast on vacation, but now it's time to write once again...Haha. To those of you who are reading my other fanfictions, I plan to continue them as soon as I can. I will also be starting my horror one...I have been so obsessed with this one, though! HAHHAHAHA..hah...sigh.. o.o Enjoy this chapter, and please review._

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**VIII**

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Once I stopped wondering why things were turning out so badly for me, I saw the strange wolf-controler boy drop his crossed arms. His eyes went wide and his mouth opened. His mouth appeared to be speaking silent words. Then he spoke something I would never have guessed in a million years would come out of his mouth.

"...M...Mutt-face?" He stuttered in a gasp.

My lips stretched in a line and my head dropped forward. "..What?" I said. Suddenly, he pointed a clawed finger towards Inuyasha and belted out laughter. A mocking, unpleasant laugh that made me annoyed. It was taunting and I didn't like it. I had heard his real laugh only seconds before, and this wasn't his real laugh. It was as if he was using that laugh to MAKE me annoyed. Or...to make someone else annoyed...My eyebrow winced and I stared.

"Little mutt-face...Ahahahah...Finally on his face where he belongs! BWAAHAHAHA! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!" He bent over and held his knees to keep himself from falling over. What on Earth was so funny? Inuyasha cut of that monster's massive leg with one hand. ONE HAND. What was to laugh at?

"Hey, girlie," I coughed. "That's Kagome." He waved a hand and chuckled. "Whatever. How'd my wolf take 'im out, huh?" He grinned widely at me. I noticed he had big white fangs. The sun glittered over them and made them sparkle and seem all the more scary.

"Your...Wolf...Was nearly killed by Inuyasha." The boy snorted and clamped a hand over his mouth, I guessed to stop laughter. I narrowed my eyes. "It's true!" His grin showed through his hand. "Sure, sure. So.." He dropped an arm. "Who are you, anyways, gir-" He caught my glare. "Kagome." He said smoothly. I narrowed an eye and, quite flustered, crossed my arms. "I...I'll have you know that...!" Why was I acting so embarrassed? I heard Shippo's 'Wake up!'s behind me. That sort of snapped me back to where I was to begin with. I put my hands one my hips and stared at him.

"You'd better cut that attitude because it's making me mad! I already have enough to deal with with that arrogant guy back there, so I certainly don't need any crud from you!" He narrowed an eye and smirked in an amused fashion. "That still doesn't answer my question, girl-err...Kagome."

Oh yeah...That was true...

"Anyways...!" I whispered harshly. "I'm traveling with Inuyasha to..to...to..." Either my mind went completely blank from his nice looks, or I really didn't know where we were going. I stared at the ground for some time before I noticed that the boy was no longer standing in front of me. Jumping out of Thought Land, I whipped around and saw him checking out the dead Rupture Wolf.

"Wooooaah..." His face was absoloutly stunned-looking. "You said...Inuyasha nearly killed it...?" He asked quietly, as if he wasn't sure he should ask the question. "Yes, that's right." I said, staightening my clothes up a bit. I watched him sort of walking around the dead beast, checking it out. "What a huge hole...And no blood." His expression looked very thoughtful. I didn't know whether or not I should tell him that I was the one who did that. I killed that wolf.

"So, Kagome...If that dog punk _nearly _killed him, who finished the job?" He stood up straight and stared at me seriously. His eyes were a deep blue and I couldn't really tell if he had pupils or not...His long black hair went past his shoulders and was held up in a pony-tail. He was pretty much taller than Inuyasha from what I could tell, but not by much. He had more muscle though.. He, like Inuyasha, had no shoes. His clothes were made up of animal fur and something that looked similar to leather. This made me think to myself,

'_Oh my gosh. Am I checking him out? Wait..But to be comparing him to Inuyasha means I checked Inuyasha out too..Oh..Oh my gosh.._' I tried to avoid his gaze while still in my thoughts...Then I realized he had asked me a question. '_Oh no! How am I going to answer that one...?_'

Then suddenly to my mass relief, I heard a noise to the left of me and saw Inuyasha stirring slightly.

Then it hit me that the boy somehow knew Inuyasha...So we'd be saved after all! Since they were good friends, we'd be in no harm at all! He seemed nice enough anyway, and I think he liked me... But then it also hit me that this wolf guy called Inuyasha a...'Mutt-face' was it? What was up with that? Maybe an inside joke kind of nick-name? I wasn't sure...

I don't know why I didn't go over to help Inuyasha up...Maybe I thought he could take care of himself, or maybe it was because I was so deep in thought. I still feel bad about not going to him...I think I should have. But it's only life to make mistakes and have regrets.

"Inuyasha!" I called in a worried tone. He raised himself up on his hands and shook his head around with a grunt. He picked himself up on his knees and then all at once, his face was blank. It took him a few moments. He stared at the body of the wolf, looked at the wolf guy, shot his gaze back around to me, checking me over I wanted to think...Then,

"Am I asleep?" He practically screamed at me. "I mean..What.." He stood up with a bit of effort and tried to find the words to describe all of what he was seeing. "What happened here? ..I.."

"You missed alot, Mutt-face." The wolf boy said, smirking. "Finally awake, huh? Keh...That's too bad..." He said with a dissapointed kind of face, glancing to the forest. I watched Inuyasha's face grow angrier and angrier by the second.

"I..Guess you two aren't old buddies then...huh?" I asked shyly. "HECK NO, IDIOT! Now you stay outta this!"

"Wha?" I stepped back. I could feel my insides heating up slowly.

"What the heck are you even DOING here, filthy wolf **puppy**?" Inuyasha shouted at the guy.

"Pfffft...What are you, my keeper? I can do whatever the heck I want!" The guy snapped.

My eyes filled with flames and my fists clenched. "Yeah right...You couldn't even get through any training! You ran away from _everything_ just to live with your smelly ANIMALS!" Inuyasha said in a loud mock-voice. My head bent forward to my chest and then my whole body shook. I was at my boiling point. I had worried about him all this time.

I went through the scariest time of my life with that monster, killed it, and then had to worry about this wolf guy. I was terrified! And to top it all off, I was actually worried, WORRIED, about that stupid Inuyasha...Maybe I was a fool...  
"IT WASN'T JUST BECAUSE OF MY WOLVES! It was because of my family! Oh, but of COURSE, Inuyasha... You wouldn't know anything about the love of a family because you don't HAVE one!"

My body went sort of relaxed and stiff at the same time. Those words echoed through my head. Inuyasha had no family? How sad..  
And then, How dare that wolf guy be so cruel to him! What a jerk! My anger came back and I jump forward between the two guys. I shot what I hoped was a dagger look at the wolf guy.Unfortunately, the words I wanted to come out of my mouth were replaced with calmer ones.

"Can you guys please stop yelling? There's no need to fight..So umm.." There was a long silence. Then they simply walked to the right of me and started yelling again. "Excuse me!" I called, anger rising. "I just said stop!"

Then to everyone's amazement, Shippo stepped forward, clearing his throat loudly.

"I don't think you should get Kagome mad," They stopped yelling and glared down at him. "Considering she just blew a hole in the demon's middle." He said smiling.

"**_YOU_ KILLED THE WOLF?**" They both screamed at the same time, staring at me in pure shock.

Silence...

"Y..yes..." My eyes filled with tears. I felt like I did something wrong. How stupid..

"And I was scared, too! If you don't mind, I'd like to be going now!" I said in a bratty way. Then, to my surprise, the wolf guy grabbed my hand. He grinned at me.

"Wow! You're strong!" He yelled excitedly. I blushed furiously.

"Yes, well, thank you..!" I turned my face away and tried to jerk my hand back.

"I like that in a girl, ya know..." He drawled smoothly. I blushed again and glared at my shoes.

"So? Why shou-should I care?" Oh great...Now I was STUTTERING. Well, it really wasn't my fault. It wasn't every day that a nice looking guy comes along and decides he's interested in me and stuff...What would YOU have done?

"Hey," Oh God, he was still talking... "How would you like to be my--"

I was jerked back with incredible strength. My back hit something hard. I looked back with a cry and saw that Inuyasha had me by the wrist and I had my back against his chest. I felt my cheeks heat up. This was the worst day of my life, PERIOD.

"Back off, Koga!" He shouted.

Koga smirked and narrowed an eye. Crossing his arms he said, "And what if I don't, Mutt?"

"If you don't, then the Demon Council will have your head before I can get to it." He snarled.

Koga's eyes snapped wide open and he gasped. "What did you say? Who..." He looked down at me.

"Who is this?" He whispered, raising a thick black eyebrow.

"This," Inuyasha said. "Is the Chosen One." The air grew thick and serious. I felt a light shiver go up my spine thinking of how I was the main source of their attention. I'd have given anything to be home at that moment. Or even back in the ice place...

"Let's go, Chosen." Inuyasha said at last. He jerked my wrist and I followed. Shippo ran at Inuyasha's heel.

Minutes passed in utter silence. We walked on and on until we came out of the woods. Not ten feet in front of us was the biggest wall I had ever seen. Massive and tall. I was awestruck. "Woooah.." I stared at it with saucer eyes.

A sharp, short growl came from my right. "What're you holding my hand for?" He said loudly in what sounded like an embarrassed voice.. He threw my arm away and backed up. I narrowed my eyes. "Hey, you were the one who grabbed my wrist back there! We weren't 'holding hands', as you put it." I said, looking away towards the wall. I walked towards it, frusteration turning into awe again.

"Just stay away from me, and we'll be fine." He sneered at me.

My face lit up with anger. "Stay away from you? Is that the thanks I get for saving your life?" I shouted exasperatedly at him.  
"KEHHH! Save my life? Sure you did, after you KNOCKED ME OUT!"

There was a short pause. "YOU DISGUSTING BOY!" I shrieked, unable to think of any other come-back. It was true that I knocked him out, but not on purpose! "Oh, so I'm disgusting? What was that back there, miss FLIRT?" Before I could properly retort the way I wanted to, I heard,

"EHEHEEMMM!" Someone cleared their throat. We whipped around and saw six strange-looking people standing in front of the wall. Part of the wall, I saw, opened up as a door. They were standing in the entrance.

For some strange and unknown reason, I jumped behind Inuyasha.

Inuyasha on the other hand bowed a little less than half-way. The old men did the same.

A lump caught in my throat and I bowed as well. Obviously if the high-on-himself Inuyasha bowed, I needed to bow too.

I heard some gasps and some ruffling of clothing so I looked up a little. On the ground in front of me, the six old men, clad in baggy silk robes were pressing their faces against the wet grass. I stared with my mouth open. Inuyasha gripped my shoulder and jerked me up-right.

"What the heck're you doing?" He hissed quietly.

I blushed in embarrassment. "Bowing." I whispered.'_Duh! What does it look like to you?_' I wanted to say."Stupid! You can't bow. You bow to no one, understand?" He whispered harshly at me. I swallowed, taking the thought in, and nodded. "Fine!" I hissed back at him.

The men stood back up, heads bowed slightly to remain lower than myself. The colors they wore were the six colors of a rainbow. Somehow, the colors were dark. Placed on their bald heads was a hat much like a Judenhut. Black with their color on the top. One of the men put his arm out towards the door and said, "Please, Chosen...This way."

I nodded and stepped forward. As I walked towards him, I looked back at Inuyasha. He saw me looking at him and raised and eyebrow. Then he glared. "What're ya lookin' at ME for?"

I narrowed my eyes and walked into the entrance.

Knowing he was there gave me some kind of feeling of relief, so I smiled.

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_**Insane-san says: **-hums a tune- Review or dieeee! n.n

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	9. IX

_**Insane-san says:** Well, no excuses for the late chapter... Here it is, so don't kill me! _

_**REVIEW OR FACE THE WRATH OF SUPAH BANNANA WHO LIVES UNDERNEATH YOUR BED!**_

_He is prepared to do my bidding. o.-**

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**IX

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Once I was fully through the door, I heard it close loudly behind me.

The minute I heard the loud sound it made, Inuyasha went "YAAAAHH!" so I turned around really fast. He was facing the door with his claws flexing dangerously and a very paranoid look on his face. I bit my tongue to keep myself from giggling at the scene. "I-I-I beg your most gracious pardon, Sir Inuyasha. Please forgive me!" One of the old men groveled. He kept bending over and over and over at Inuyasha. It was a little sickening... I saw one of the men walk up to me. That man was followed by two more who were bowing to me as well. "Please, Chosen, please! Forgive us. We beg you not to punish us!" I snorted with loud laughter which I quickly turned into something that sounded like a choking cough.

"You are forgiven, men." I said in a noble tone. They smiled thankfully and bowed again. I was now surrounded by all six. Inuyasha was left completely forgotten and extremely annoyed-looking. A vein in his temple was twitching and a fang poked out from his upper lip.

"You are most gracious and kind, fair Chosen." "Yes, most kind!" "Goddess Chosen, thank you!" "Please come with us, holy Chosen."

Inuyasha caught the corner of my eye as I turned to folllow the men and I saw him mocking the old men in an extremely rude way.

"Inuyasha, why did you get freaked out when the door closed? I thought you were stronger than that..." I said in a fake tone of innocence.  
"Keh...This place always gives me the creeps is all." He narrowed his eyes at me and turned his head away.

"Okay." I said. I looked all around me. I was surrounded by huge buildings, all of which seemed to be made of dirt and clay or something like them. Brown, white, tan, black, red buildings everywhere. There were a few grass huts here and there... I was walking on a sand path that went straight. It looked like it hadn't been used for a very long time because there was tall grass coming up out of the path. Little paths were leading away from the main one as well. I looked to my left and right and saw that no one was anywhere. What I meant to say was, there weren't any people around. Despite there being SO MANY cool buildings, no one was in them. The place was deserted. Dusty and quiet...

"Hey, Inuyasha," I said."Hm? What is it?" His tone was impatient. Meanie...  
"Where did everyone go?" He let out a low laugh. "Everyone?" He asked, smirking. "Who's everyone?"  
"Everyone being all the people that should be here...This city's pretty big and there's no one here." I stated the obvious.  
"Keh... Figure it out yerself." He scratched his ear and shook his head around and we kept walking.

I wondered for one scary moment that there was no Chosen One. That maybe I was taken here for the sheer enjoyment of Inuyasha who was an evil demon king who brought me here 'cause for some reason, he didn't like me. And he wanted me dead. But it passed, and I smiled to myself. That would never happen...

Would it?

Suddenly I felt a familiar chill run up and down my spine and I looked behind me. I stopped dead in my tracks. My eyes grew wide and fearful and my heart stopped beating for a second. There, behind me, behind the six men and Inuyasha,

were thousands of ghosts.

Following us. Dragging their feet after us in the sand. Their eyes wide and curious. Transparent white and green. Staring.

My mouth opened wide in a scream that could only be heard inside my own mind. I took in quiet gasp of air. I heard in the background people talking to me. For a second, I heard Inuyasha's voice, but it was drowned out by my screaming thoughts. So many...I had never seen so many. I was so terrified.' _They might hurt me..._' I took a daring step backward. Then another. And another.

I stumbled backward and then turned all the way around. I ran and ran up that path, away from those thousands of ghosts. They were haunting that place. That place that was once their home... That place that was _still_ their home. I wondered blindly what had happened to them. Who killed those many people? How did they die? But I couldn't think anymore. I wanted to get away as quickly as I could. I didn't dare look back. I was too afraid that they would be running after me. Flying after me with revenge in their many dead faces. One or five ghosts wasn't anything, but so many was mind-numbingly frightening. Especially if they weren't nice and were angry at how they died.

It didn't really matter how they died... What really mattered was that I get out of that city as soon as possible. So I kept running and running, sand flying up behind me.

Something landed in front of me in the sand. I tripped to a stop and looked up. Inuyasha glared down at me. "What are you DOING?" He shouted angrily. I shook my head. How could he ask such a question? He was blocking my path. Maybe he WAS an evil demon king after all... But then I realized, like a blow in the face, that Inuyasha couldn't see ghosts. He wasn't afraid. Not like I was... I was weak and didn't want to be here to begin with. Defeating that Rupture wolf seemed like eating a grape compared to this...  
"There's not enough time to stop. Run with me if you want to talk!" I tried to run around him but he jumped swiftly in the way of my path. I stared at him in disbelief.

"Just run of like that...What's your problem?" He crossed his arms and glared down at me through one narrow, golden eye. And I stared up at him with my frightened brown ones. "Inuyasha, there's..." My head was jerking a little as I looked over my shoulder. That icy shiver sliced my back and I gasped. They were surrounding us. From all sides. There was no way out... I jerked my head towards Inuyasha with what I remember to be a look of pleading. His lower jaw twitched and stared at me. "You sick?" He asked. Sick...SICK?

"There's no way out. We can't run anymore." I clenched my sweaty hands shut and looked around again. They were closing fast. Faces of women and children. Young men and old men. Everywhere... "What're you sayin', woman?" He sneered slightly at me, but something about that expression was hiding something. "Inuyasha, make them go away...There's too many." His mouth opened a little. "I don't know what to do--" One of them reached out and pushed a hand through my shoulder. I let out a shout and jumped away from it. Suddenly I had a flashback. At least nine years back...

_"Kagome,"__ My grandmother stroked my short black hair as I lay on her lap. "when you see a sad or angry ghost, do not turn in fear, child...Open your arms as if to embrace that spirit. Help that spirit, and it in turn shall help you. The debt of a ghost is very great. You are easily frightened from all of the things that have happened to you so early in your life, Kagome. In time, you shall suffer even more. Perhaps more than any girl ever should...But Kagome, that does not mean you need to hide." I blinked. "It doesn't, Gramma?" She laughed lightly. "No, it does not, child. It does not. Be brave and face challenges. Just because people say you are clumsy and fearful does not mean you must think yourself to be so for the rest of your life. Sometimes taking dangerous chances is a good thing. Remember this, Kagome, and you shall do well. I can see you will do well."_

I swallowed and thought, '_Screw that..._' They had moved through Inuyasha and were bunched tightly around me. I had barely any moving space left. '_What could so many ghosts want? I want them to go away!_' Their hands grabbed at me. They clawed at me and made muffled groans. They kicked at me and some of them screamed at me. When I backed up, they were solid. I couldn't go through them anymore. "GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU DEAD FREAKS!" I screamed. I barely heard Inuyasha over their groans and screams, but I think he said "Dead freaks?" I slapped at them but that just made them angrier. Then I thought of my gramma. She died a long time ago and some people in my family thought she was a real coocoo. Others told me she had psychic abilities and that was where I got my little 'ghost gift.' "What do you want? What's wrong?" I screamed at them. They clawed at me harder.

Inuyasha's face was shocked and ubelieving. He kept looking like he wanted to jump at me to help me, but he always remained where he was. I imagined what this looked like to him. I was being beat up by nothing at all but the air. Fighting back, but failing.

Blood dripped off my arms where their nails cut at my flesh. Several places they kicked made me think, '_Well, there's a bruise._' Blood was trickling into my right eye and making me twitch it closed with pain. I let out a scream of fury and frusteration and lunged at them as hard as I could. They had tackled me to the ground and I knew I wouldn't last much longer. The six old men were crying and staring at eachother as they watched me. It was clear that they had no idea what to do either, like me. All fear had vanished and now I was annoyed. Seemingly two thousand to one didn't seem fair at all from where I was standing. Inuyasha's face changed like he suddenly realized something. "Ghosts?" He asked quietly. But to me he merely mouthed it because I couldn't hear anything besides the dumb spirits. My vision was red with blood and tears blinded me further. My leg was shattered and a bone was poking up out of my knee, I could see it. I retched and looked away. Then my shoulder got pulled out of its socket and tears flooded down my cheeks. I screamed.

They ripped at my hair, slapped me, punched me, sliced me and screamed.

'_This is so not cool...I don't wanna die._' I tried to stand but they tackled me down every time. "HELP ME YOU IDIOT!" I screamed at Inuyasha. "What do I do? I can't see anyone there!" he shouted back, but not loudly. He looked pretty scared. "Do something!" **SMACK!** Black eye, I knew it. "**ANYTHING!**" I shrieked. I forced myself not to cry in the presence of Inuyasha. But anywhere else away from him and I wouldn't stop crying for a second. I wasn't going to simply lay there waiting to be beaten to death, but what could I do? I knew Inuyasha was thinking the same thing.

I grabbed two women by their hair and cracked their heads together. My shoulder pulsed with pain and I groaned. They flew backwards with a wail, letting two fresh fighters in their place. No matter how many I took down, and I took down MANY, they were replaced almost instantly. I thrust my good leg, if you could call it that, into the air and kicked blindly at the ghosts. They were dead, they couldn't die. I was fighting a battle that was in every sense impossible to beat.

Then I stopped. I didn't fight back. I had no more strength. Inuyasha was screaming at me for directions, but I couldn't find my voice. I saw him through my blood and tears swinging his claws around stupidly. Cursing loudly into the air and screaming at me. Blood clogged my throught. I tried to swallow the metalic taste and let out a sob of defeat. It hurt beyond any pain I had been through. More than when my dad died. More than when my gramma died. More than when my brother died. More than when I thought of how I never got the chance to meet someone who could know my 'gift' and understand it and still like me. Maybe even love me. Tears mingled with blood. I spit blood in one of their faces. The ghost I spit at grabbed my hair with both freezing hands and shook my head around.

Then I screamed. I screamed a scream that made Inuyasha scream and jump backward and fall to the ground to scoot back as fast as he could. That made the old men crumple to the ground, crying loudly and screaming and pointing their arms out to me. Everything I was feeling came out in that scream and I was suddenly blind. I thought one of the ghosts had punched my eyes so much that I couldn't see anymore. But being blind was supposed to be black, and I was seeing white mingling with streaks of light blue. A blinding light. I couldn't see anything at all. It was nice. I screamed and screamed and didn't stop. Screaming felt good and I didn't want to go back to feeling the pain. I was tingling all over and then grew numb. As my scream died down, so did the light. Everything was going back to normal. My eyes were wet and my vision was blurred like my eyes were dialated.

Silence wrapped around me and I waited for something to happen. I was no longer being beaten. There was no freezing chill from the ghosts. It was only then that I saw the ghosts had left. Why? What happened? My leg wasn't throbbing with the bone that pierced through my skin in my knee and blood didn't blind me. I didn't feel any more pain. My body felt better than normal and a happy smile came to my face. Whatever happened was really...good.

Slowly, I sat up. I looked all over my body and found no signs of damage. The horrible memory still stayed, but I wasn't physically injured. It was weird... I looked up and a tall ghost stood over me. If he was alive, I would have suspected him to be the mayor of the city, or the chief or whatever. My insides froze and my mouth opened.

"You are weak to be the Divine Chosen One. Thee who must save us from our demise. Very weak... You will save no one."

I swallowed. Hard.

"You will never save our spirits unless your powers grow greater. So great, that you can easily avoid small trials such as the one you have just been through in the future."

"Save..." I found myself speaking. "Save you? Save those spirits?" My voice was rising to a shout as I found the strength to stand on my feet. "How can you think I'll save the ghosts of this city after what just happened?" I shouted. His face remained the same. "You have no right to test me. To judge me and decide I'm weak. You make me sick! How could you put someone through so much pain and suffering and still expect help? So I'm weak for blasting those ghosts to kingdom come, huh? What about that?" My arms shook and still he remained expressionless. "It is YOU who need to suffer. Not me! I'll never help you so long as I live!" To my complete surprise, he smiled. A strange wicked smile.

"We shall see." With that, he faded to nothingness.

I took a deep breath and shook my head. I smoothed my clothes and turned around to face the six men and Inuyasha. Inuyasha would be mad at me for having so much power. I almost smiled at the thought. But then I saw them sprawled out on the ground, inconscious.

"Oh my gosh, what have I done?" I whispered in shock. My fingers shook and I pressed them to my lips and stared.

I ran over to the six men and saw that they were starting to wake up. "Oh, I'm so sorry." I started. "I...I just didn't know that I..."  
Seeing no wounds on them, I ran to Inuyasha. He was a good ten feet away from the old men. And about twenty from where I last saw him before the...The err... The explosion.

He was on his side under the shade of a grass hut. I skidded to a stop and knelt down beside him rather ungracefully. I grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Inuyasha, wake up! I didn't know that would happen... I didn't mean to make you guys faint or anything! I'm so sorry. Inuyasha!" I shook him harder and his eyelids flinched. I turned him over onto his back and made a whimpering sound. What if I hurt him somehow? It was so stupid not knowing when or how my _powers_ would come out. I let go and watched him wake up. Slowly, his eyes opened. He blinked a few times. His ears were flopped to the side and he was just staring at the wall of the hut he was facing. His blank expression was so unlike the Inuyasha I had seen. It was peaceful like he didn't care about anything for a few moments.

Then, to my shocked horror, I saw his ears shoot straight up and his eyes snapped wide open. All the cares that he didn't have before suddenly rushed back into his face. He sat up and whipped around in my direction.

"Kagome!" He said and stared at me up and down. '_Did he just use my name?_' I asked myself in surprise. He grabbed one of my arms and stared at it. "Are you okay? What the heck was happening? I didn't know what--" He dropped my arm and stared at the ground with his mouth open. Right when I was about to assure him that all was well, shock turned to anger in his face. He clenched his fangs and his eyes were burning an evil, bright golden. I finally took notice to how sharp and white those fangs were... The fur on his dog ears was no longer a smooth white, but bristling.

He gripped my shoulders and put his face close to mine. My mouth was open with fear and shock. He shook me once and yelled, "What the heck were you doing just gettin' beat up like that?" He shook me again and I snapped my mouth shut. I was too freaked out to say anything. "You're supposed to be the Chosen One, you cursed fool!" He shook me more and I gasped with fear. I suddenly thought it might be better to have another go with those ghosts then have to be this close to Inuyasha when he was so angry. "I swear," He growled. "if you do anything like that again I...I'll--" His eyes moved around like he was searching my stare. The anger started fading from his face.

Abruptly, he dropped my arms and shoved me backwards. His head was bent and his bangs were shielding his eyes. He stood up with clenched, shaking fists and turned his back on me. He began walking once more up the sandy path.

I sat there for a long time staring off in his direction. The sun shone down on his black clothes and the sand was being kicked up by his bare feet as he walked away. A drop of sweat came off from his head and I could hear him faintly muttering about God knows what...

"What the...fruit..." I heard many footsteps and then I was surrounded by the old rainbow men.

I'm a little ashamed to admit I wasn't really listening to what they were saying. I was way too busy trying to figure out what just happened.

Then they started helping me up off my knees and we all walked after Inuyasha. Keeping quite a bit of space between us, mind you.

I heard bits and pieces of what they were saying. Like, "Thought you were doomed" and "Such wonderous powers" and like "Inuyasha nearly murdered" and stuff like that.

As we walked, the scenery was changing. There weren't as many buildings, and then there weren't any at all. I glanced left and right and then back at my main target: Inuyasha. He was such a puzzle. First he tells me he'd never use my name because that would mean getting close to me and he'd "rather die than get close" or however that went... And then he doesn't care about anything I do and acts annoyed when I speak to him.. And THEN he uses my name and acts like he was scared for me.

'_...Wait..._'

I trotted up to Inuyasha and started walking with him. His once fairly relaxed stance immediately got tense when I stopped next to him.

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha." He winced slightly. "Sorry?" He spat. "Yeah, sorry." I repeated. "I know you didn't know what to do... I'm just not that strong." He smirked at that, but it wasn't a real smirk. It was strained like it was forced out. Silence followed and we were nearing the other side of the wall. I frowned as we neared it. "I know you were scared and didn't know what to do so--"

He laughed. It was forced and strained too, come to think of it...

"Scared? KEH! I wasn't scared. You stupid kid." My mouth opened. '_How...Dare...He...?_'

My face flushed a little and I put my hands in my pockets. "I'm not a kid!" I shouted suddenly. He gave a 'keh.'

Silence followed again and we were right up to the wall. Images of those ghosts beating me so harshly and my shoulder being popped out... The pain I was remembering didn't seem real. I wanted to cry about it a little but Inuyasha wasn't exactly the kind of person that would openly let you talk about something harsh like that. "Before...When you were shaking me and stuff..." I shot him a quick glance.

"Sorry for making you worry I guess..." I said quietly. There was a terrible building silence in which Inuyasha became shakier and shakier, like he was holding in something. I regretted speaking at all. I waited in that terrible silence, for Inuyasha surely would explode.

"WHATEVER!" He suddenly boomed. "I wasn't worried! Like heck I was! NO WAY!" I almost fell over at the sudden loudness.

Then anger slapped me. "You were worried! Why do you doubt it? Do you hate me that much?" I stared at him through wide, angry eyes and waited for the answer.

"OF COURSE I DO!" He screamed. My jaw set and my eyes filled with tears. He didn't even hesitate to reply...

"Well, fine! Then I hate you too!" I shouted. He whipped his head around to me. "GOOD! Haven't we been through this disgusting conversation before?" My body flinched with anger when he said 'disgusting conversation.' "I don't WANT you to like me, remember?" He snarled.

This time, _I_ was waiting to explode. "WELL THAT'S GREAT!" I shrieked. His ears twitched from the loudness.  
"'Cause I don't want YOU to like ME either! Remember that part?"

"YEAH!"

"WELL, GOOD!"

"GOOD!"

"GREAT!"

"OKAY THEN!"

We turned our backs on eachother. I crossed my arms and huffed angrily and he was growling behind me. He was saying not-nice things but I couldn't hear them very well. They sounded more like growls than words. I heard a loud banging noise like a stick hitting a hollow rock only louder. I turned around. He had kicked part of the wall and a door opened. He let out a snarl about someone being a 'frusterating little blank blank kid' and walked through the doorway.

I just remembered the old men were there because they were leading me suddenly through the doorway after...HIM.

No matter what he said, I was still convinced he didn't hate me completely. Or maybe it was just because he needed me to be alive and unharmed because I was the CHOSEN ONE.

"My life is stupid." I hissed.  
"Just figered that out, didja?" I heard him growl under his breath. Heat rose to my ears. Unable to think of anything really good to say, I said, "That's FIGURE, stupid! Not 'FIGER." I shouted. "Maybe to you." He snapped over his shoulder. "To the English DICTIONARY, idiot!" I said with a disbelieving smile.  
"YOU'RE THE IDIOT!" He roared. I flinched. "So quite callin' me stupid an' stuff!" I narrowed my eyes dangerously at him. "Maybe I wouldn't call you stupid if you weren't But the trouble is, you are. So it's not like I'm lying." I grinned rather...meanly, I guess.

He cursed loudly. Well, I think it was a curse. It wasn't exactly any word I'd ever heard before, but judging by his tone and by the way the six men winced hugely, I could guess...

Ahead of us was some huge castle formation...thing. Smoke came billowing up from the other side of the outer-wall. That looked like where we were going. I thought about how there was probably a king and a queen. I imagined them offering their thrones to me. But then there was always the people... The people would scare me, I was sure. They'd group around me and want autographs or something. What if I was gonna be sacrificed? I twitched my eyelid.

"Hey, Inuyasha..."

"How come you always gotta drawl it out like that? Why the HECK can't you just start talking about what you wanna talk about?" He snapped so suddenly at me, I jumped. "Because I'd like to know that you were listening and aware that I'm speaking. That's all..."

He snickered darkly. "Oh, I'm always aware of when you're speaking. So aware, that I wish I were deaf." He turned away once again.

"You shouldn't wish something horrible on yourself when you're just joking around."

"I wasn't joking."

"...Even so...You might regret wishing for it if you really get your wish." I said in a harsh whisper. "Haven't you ever heard anyone say 'be careful what you wish for?'" I asked. "What a stupid thing to say." He said through a grin.

My eyes burned with angry flames and my jaw clenched and my fists shook. His expression faltered as he stared at me.

"My grandmother told me that a long time ago." I said firmly. After walking while still looking at me he finally said, "Well, then the 'apple doesn't fall far from the tree' I guess." He flashed his fangs at me in an arrogant grin. My mouth opened. "AND WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?" I shouted. "Oh, I think you know what it means..."

"...Did you just call me AND my grandmother stupid?" I snapped angrily. "Maybe you're just too stupid to figure out if that's true or not..." He replied with an air of sadness in his voice. I began contemplating murder...

"INUYASHA! YOU ARE THE MEANEST, STUPIDEST, BIGGEST _JERK _OF--"

"LORD INUYASHA!" A man's voice screamed in the distance. Inuyasha's ears bounced slightly and he dropped his arms from behind his head. Again, we heard the voice call out. I remember thinking, '_What sort of ignorant person could ever put 'lord' in front of Inuyasha's name?_' Something loud was getting closer every step we took. The closer we got to getting to that castle place, the louder the noise was. Suddenly it wasn't just a noise anymore...It was...

'_Cheering?_' I clasped my hands together and frowned slightly in nervous worry. Inuyasha however, was smirking. His eyes flashing.

"LORD INUYASHA HAS RETURENED!" The man screamed again. It was louder than ever as we grew closer. Just down the hill we were walking upon was the rest of the path that let to a draw bridge. It couldn't be more than fifty feet ahead now...

Then the man who was yelling about Inuysha suddenly went balistic and started screaming really loudly. I heard him try to speak several times. And then he screeched, "THE CHOSEN IS WITH HIM!" Like, really, really loud. Screams from ahead made my hands move to shield my ears. Butterflies were romping around in my stomach.

Then there were trumpets blaring.

Absentmindedly, I ran to Inuyasha. I got right behind him and sort of hid there, peeking out behind his arm every now and then. It was really weird how one second I totally hated his guts and wanted to be as far away from him as possible, and then the other second I go to him for protection. That started happening a little too often. But then again, if he was a jerk, I didn't have to be.

The wood creaked beneath our feet as we walked along the deep brown wood of the draw bridge.

"Relax." I jumped at the voice that was so close to me. I looked up. Inuyasha was looking down at me over his shoulder. I smiled faintly and nodded. He nodded too and looked ahead. '_What was up with that?_' I wondered. '_He almost sounded...Nice?_'

My shoe hit stone and we were off the drawbridge. My fingers gripped lightly on the back of his black shirt and I tried to swallow the growing lump in my neck.

On all sides were hundreds upon hundreds of people. What looked like guards were pushing the people away to leave us a path. Some room to actually walk in all that mass of people... Then my nose was running and I sniffed. They...The people...

They weren't human.

People with scales, people with feathered wings and dragon-like wings... Long claws, short claws, no claws. Long pointed ears and short pointed ears. No one in the crowd that I had glanced upon had dog ears like Inuyasha.

People were screaming like crazy. It was worse than an Ayumi concert. Much worse. A million times louder.

"Hey, hey," I heard Inuyasha shout slightly at me. I looked up at him. His devilish grin made me recoil slightly. "Want me to throw you in the crowd, Kagome?" He asked, grinning. My face paled. He...He really would do it.

"No." I whimpered. He chuckled and narrowed his eyes, holding that grin. "Not so loud now, are you? Not so quick to get angry?" He asked casually. I frowned and tightened my grip on his shirt. His eyes widened slightly and he blinked.

"I'll.." I looked around at the many, many screaming, lunging people. "I'll yell at you as soon as we can get some quiet."

He smirked. "Keh, I thought somethin' like that..."

We walked further into the crowd.

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_**Insane-san says: **Well, I think I made up for my absence. Long chapter? I think it's long. Could be longer, but I didn't want it to be. REVIEW OR NO NEXT CHAPTER!_

_DUN DUN DUN!_

_Guess what? I'm gonna put Hojo in the next chapter. Interesting...Huh? -evil smirk-

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	10. X

**_Insane-san says: _**_In acknowledgement to a certain reviewer, Inuyasha will be taken down 'a peg' when...Umm...When he starts getting to know Kagome I guess. Keep in mind, that was like...Their first day knowing eachother. If you've seen/read Inuyasha, he wasn't exactly the ideal guy when they started out now, was he? No. He tried to kill Kagome, hm? Yes, that's right. -hits Inuyasha with a spikey stick-_

_ I found these lists of the top ten things you'll never hear Inuyasha say. I've got tons more hilarious ones...Enjoy. -smile-_

_The number one thing on the first one was:_

**_-without blushing-"Kagome, I love you. Screw Kikyo and any thoughts about my having been responsable for her death. Let's go get married!"_**

_First on the second: **"Okay, I give up! You win."**_

_First on the third:  
** Koga: You dirty mutt!  
Inuyasha: Sticks and stones may break my bones...**

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_

"Boy, I'm starved."

My stomach gurgled loudly. We had gotten through the crowd and were in one of the biggest rooms I've ever seen or been in. It was at least as big as a Football field...If not bigger. It had a concrete floor that was stained with the most beautiful shades of brown and gold. An enormous chandelier hung from the ceiling. The walls were stained the same color as the floors. Thick wooden strips lined the walls leaving wide gaps so the wall remained visible. Aside from the chandelier, the room was completely empty. '_Maybe it's a dining room..._' I wondered, awestruck at how pretty it was.

"Keh, YOU'RE hungry? I was the one doin' all the work. Running around like a fool..." He snorted and shook his head. "They'll probably have a big stinkin' feast for ya, so stop complainin' for a while." Inuyasha said, leading me across the dining room.

I narrowed my eyes at his back. I found myself glancing down at my jean shorts (that used to be long) and my blood-soaked shirt. It was a little embarrassing. I didn't know _what_ happened to my sweat shirt... And where in the WORLD did Shippo go?

"Inuyasha," I jumped and we both turned to face an old woman with a black eye-patch. Her hair was long and grey. A single white ribbon held it back tightly. Deep lines darkened her features with age. She wore a simple white robe that stretched past her feet and hands and a black obi with white flowers crawling across it.  
Inuyasha fixed his posture as if suddenly seeing that she was really there. I was about to bow to her to show respect when Inuyasha's words came back to me. '_I bow to no one now..._'

"Ah, Kaede..." He said slowly, his voice a strange tone that I hadn't heard before.

There was a silence. Kaede's expression began to change. She lifted her head up and let out a fluffy kind of laugh. Her wrinkles deepened around her face. She smiled pleasantly. "You have not called me that for some time, Inuyasha. Not since the first time you came into this city. So many, many years ago..." Her eyes wandered over him and she stared. Inuyasha seemed a little bit confused but then he raised an eyebrow with his eyes halfway closed and glanced away.

"I only used your name 'cause-"

"Oh hush up, Inuyasha," Inuyasha jerked slightly out of his mocking posture, shocked at being cut off. "You missed this old woman even in the slightest bit, did you not? Just as you missed this over-crowded city." Her smile remained and she folded her hands together behind her back.  
"You have grown taller, I think, in the time that you have been on your mission." She nodded. Something about her seemed wise, yet at the same time, strangley empty-minded.

"I thought that you may no longer be a boy when you returned, but from your arrogance in hiding your true feelings I suspect my hopes are short-lived." She laughed again and Inuyasha scowled heavily.

Her face brightened suddenly and her mouth opened. She stuttered and couldn't speak."The Chosen One!" She said hoarsly, once she found her voice. "The Chosen is a female? Praise be to the Gods, I never thought of that possibility!" She shouted slightly. I stirred where I stood and picked at the bloodied hem of my shirt. I looked up from my picking and saw she was bowing low. As low as her old back would allow her it seemed...

She rose with a glowing smile. "It is such an honor to meet you, Chosen One." I couldn't help but smile. "Same to you." I said politely, nodding my head once.

She clapped her wrinkled hands a few times. "Please tell me, Chosen, your name really is Kagome then, is it not?"

I tried to hide my smile. People were funny around...well...wherever this was...

"Yes, it is." Kaede looked almost releived. "Ah, very good. Inuyasha," She faced him. "It is so nice to have you back here. I feel that the city has its missing piece back again." Inuyasha shoved his hands in his black pockets and tried to look busy staring at the walls. "I'm sure most people don't think that." He said almost too quietly to hear. My eyes widened a little. He was the guy who was placed to get me, the..._Chosen_. Shouldn't he be like..._Really_ popular?

"Come, come, Inuyasha. You mustn't think like that. Besides," She looked towards me. "Everyone will be too busy with the Chosen One to notice their feelings towards you." No one spoke. Inuyasha and Kaede just stared at eachother. Then their serious faces broke. Kaede laughed and Inuyasha grinned.

I hadn't really ever seen Inuyasha act this nice to anyone before. Well, it wasn't 'nice', it was just... not mean, I guess. I kinda felt left out for a few minutes. I felt lonely. Here was this nice old lady who knew Inuyasha really well, and Inuyasha wasn't ignoring her or insulting her left and right. Even if it was only relatively un-friendly things, at that moment, I really wanted Inuyasha to talk to _me_.

'_Why am I acting so stupid? I'm a selfish idiot. It's not like he's my _friend_. It's not like we even like eachother at all..._' I looked at him. '_So why...?_'

"Well, there are many things I need to do as of right now. I must talk to at least one hundred people..." She sighed. "I'll leave you to the rest of your mission, Inuyasha." Her tone became serious. She walked to the left towards an opening in the wall. "Wonderful to have you back here! Oh, and Chosen One, even more wonderful to have you here." She gave me a bow before she disappeared around the corner.

Inuyasha took his hands from his pocket and started walking to the other end of the room.

"Come on, _Chosen_." As always, he sneered the name. Despite my ill feelings, I followed.  
"I thought we were _past_ that. Haven't you called me by my name already?"

I got no reply.

We were about half-way through the room when I heard, "INUYASHA! **INUYASHA-SENSEI!**" Someone screamed. My heart leapt a beat at the sudden break in silence.

'_Inuyasha...SENSEI?_' I screamed to myself in pure shock, almost not daring to turn around.

Inuyasha turned full swing with a wide smirk. "Oh, hey." He said casually. I think it was about five guys. Yeah, they came out of seemingly no where... It was a little scary. Especially since they were calling Inuyasha 'sensei.'

Like everyone else I'd seen besides the six old men and Kaede, they were not human. They had pointed ears and odd-colored hair. Their clothes were made up of leather and armor. They carried swords on their waists. Despite them looking like they were ready for some kind of battle, they seemed extremely boyish and immature. Shoving into eachother as they ran towards us.

They all bowed a bit and looked all excited and happy. "We're so glad you're back, Sensei!"  
"Tell us all about your trip!"  
"Your head's got a scab, are you okay?"  
"**OF COURSE** he's okay, you fool! He's so strong and--"  
"We heard you got the chosen! Where is he?"  
"Gramma Kaede told us all you were back!"

"I'll tell you everything later. All this crap needs to be done..." Inuyasha muttered.

"What crap, Inuyasha-sensei? And Who's that?" Someone asked quietly."Then you'll start teaching us again, right Inuyasha-sensei?" One piped up."Yes you will, won't you? We still have so much to learn!" They looked so desperate... "Not for a while, guys." There were upset groans of loss.

"You guys better go and get your stuff ready so I can see what you've learned while I was gone."

Their faces went pale. Then the color came back and their excitement increased ten-fold. They hurried away laughing loudly and yelling at eachother.

As Inuyasha turned to walk away, I followed him. We walked to the far end of the dining room to a large door. The door was made of wood and had thousands of tiny, detailed designs on it. Rivers, trees, animals, demons, castles... The handle was just the same. Both perfect.

My eyes narrowed in thought. The handle was attached to a door, so it was obvious that it would've been worn down from all the rubbing against the wood. Yet it was perfect as if it had never been touched. I almost asked him why that was, when I saw him bent over slightly in front of the door. His face didn't have much color in it, but his eyes were oddly determined. The gold was flashing like a flame.

He was _extremely_ hesitant to put his hand on the handle of the tall, wooden door. His ears twitched a few times and his eyebrows were drawn together. His hand winced as a claw touched the handle. My heart sped up as I watched him. Was there some sort of creature behind the door?

"Inu...Yasha, I can do it if you--" He jumped aside. His head was turned to the left so I couldn't see his expression, but somehow I could tell he was relieved. I smiled faintly. "If you ever want to ask me to do something, you can ask, okay? I won't bite you or anything. If you ever need help with something--"

"It's not like I-" He choked and coughed for a few seconds. I heard him swallow and he crossed his arms. Wanting to get on with it, I gripped a hand around the handle. I saw his whole body wince out of the corner of my eye. I twisted it and jerked the door open.

Right in front of me were stairs. Lots of stairs. Made of the same kind of wood the door was made out of.  
And to my shock, there were the same looking patterns going up the stairs. Intricately carved with such detail. What a shame it was for someone to have made these patterns on stairs. Feet would wear the carvings down to nothing!

'_What story is this?_' I wondered, staring at the designs with awe.

"Hey," I started walking up the stairs carefully. "Why did it look like the handle to the door hadn't been touched?" I asked, still thinking. Inuyasha cleared his throat. He closed the door quickly and released his hand as if it had burned him. He walked up after me.

"It's protected by spells. Same with the stairs and the walls." He replied quickly in a growling tone. His shoulders were tensed and his head was low. His shocking golden eyes glared up nervously from his silver bangs and were constantly darting around. I wondered if I should be afraid too.

"The walls?" I echoed him. Then I saw that the walls were wooden and carved through as well. Everything was so beautiful.

I kept walking up. Inuyasha behind me. I noticed after a short while that Inuyasha appeared to be forcing his legs to move. I wanted to say something comforting to him, but what could I say?

'_Inuyasha, I'm sure it won't be _that_ painful when we walk into our doom...Hahahah..._'

"Why are you so freaked out, Inuyasha?" I asked carefully.

It was a while before I got a reply. His face told me that he gave in to my question.

"It's just...There's..." He swept his tongue over his fangs quickly, almost glowing eyes narrowing at the wall. To my complete horror, I felt blood rush to my face.

"When I first got here..." He held his jaw in place stiffly. "The guy we're about to see doesn't...exactly...He was always..." I was listening hard. "I hate him, okay? I just don't...Want to be here now..." I tried to smile to make us both feel better. "Well, I'm glad you opened up to me. You can do that any time you want to." My voice faltered in the end when I remembered that I blushed. Heck, I couldn't keep kidding myself that it was the heat of the narrow room...

I wiped a bead of sweat off the side of my face and stopped abruptly. I was standing on the last step. We had reached the top. A door was now in front of me. It was white with carvings in it. '_White wood?_' I wondered to myself. It was amazing. Flawless. All thoughts of being careful on the stairs and about the little 'blush' incident went away. I was about to open the door when I heard Inuyasha's voice.

"Get it over with, Inuyasha." Inuyasha groaned in a far-away voice. Then...All the thoughts came back.

To my amazement, he walked a few steps up so he could be in front of the door. All signs of nervousness and reluctnaces vanished in an instant. Next to me was the regular Inuyasha.

Only faker.

He gripped the white wooden door handle, turned it, and pushed the door open.

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_**Insane-san says: **A taste of fluff? Yay! A cliff-hanger? **Gasp**! No! How could she do something so witchy? I'd better send her a good flame...Darned -bleeep-...I'll just click that review button like I always SHOULD.

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_


	11. XI

_**Insane-san says: **Sometimes when I spell my pen-name, I spell SAND instead of SAN. Then I think of insane sand. I think it... goes around suffocating people or something... Now I'm afraid of myself because secretly... Maybe I'm insane-sand? -shudder-

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_

The white door opened as much as it could and I heard it softly thud against the wall.

Standing close next to Inuyasha, I darted my eyes around the room quickly. It was an office of some kind. All I remember was that there was something blue on the floor; I looked too fast to see what, book shelves, blaring candles that lit the room brightly, a desk, a large window,

and a cold-looking man.

I heard a small _crick_ as Inuyasha's fists clenched so tightly a knuckle popped. That made me stir with discomfort. The man looked up and my breath was cut short. His hair was long, straight, and lightsilver, way past his waist. He had dark stripes on each pale cheek. His ears were pointed and his eyebrows were slanted in annoyance the moment he laid golden eyes on us. The resemblance he had to Inuyasha was shocking once you looked at him closely. This man was much more...Elegant-looking than Inuyasha. His eyes were darker and much more cold. He had pale skin and, wearing the right clothes, could have been a king of some country.

He fixed his eyes on me and held his gaze for several minutes. I was too stunned to move.  
He was like a prince who just kind of...popped out of a fairy tale.

Inuyasha hated _him_?

Once his eyes moved slowly back over to Inuyasha, I breathed again.

"Inuyasha," The way he said his name wasn't like I'd heard it said before. It was drawling and cold. It almost couldn't have been his name at all. More like a foreign curse word said in a smoothe, uncaring voice. "So you have returned." He finished, his expression relaxed from it's annoyance.

"Yeah." Inuyasha growled. The man turned around fully from gazing out his large window. "I must assume then, that this is the Chosen?" He said without looking at me. I felt my eyes narrow a little. "What a brilliant guess." Inuyasha said coolly. The man's sleek eyebrows slanted once more.  
"Hm. Indeed." He lifted an eyebrow slowly. "Of course, I am surprised that your vocabulary consists of such an elaborate word as _brilliant_." My jaw flexed and I allowed my mouth to open. Right then, I actually _really_ considered pulling out one of my amazing retorts that I had made up for Inuyasha on our journey to the city. One would've been enough to do the trick amazingly.

But I heard Inuyasha's growl rumbling in his chest and swallowed my words. He was shooting a full body and face look of rage at the icey guy. He tried several times to swallow his growl and speak but every time he opened his mouth, a truely frightening snarl erupted. Finally, he got a hold of himself. "I brought the Chosen, so just get on with it, Sesshoumaru!" He had tried to keep his voice calm but ended up shouting in the end.

Sesshoumaru eyed me with dislike and tensed his jaw muscles. "Very well." He turned from us to walk to the other side of the room. He stood in front of a glass case. I tried to see what was in it but his white suited body was covering it from my view. I heard several clicking and scraping noises before he finally turned around.

He stood before us now with a palm-sized diamond. It was white and just...beautiful. He held it out with hesitance towards me.

"It is my sad, sad duty to give this to you, Chosen One." He said airily. "Accept it with..." He suddenly appeared to be struggling with something. His eyes closed and his eyebrows winced together. He opened his mouth and his fangs glinted. "My _blessing_."

I reached my hand forward and took the diamond. I cradled it in my palm and brought it close to my face. The dim white light that grew from it began to shine brighter as I held it. It glowed around my face. I smiled.

"At least I know you did not fail us all like I believed without doubt you would and pick the wrong Chosen, Inuyasha." Sesshoumaru's dark yellow eyes flickered in the light of the candles' flames. "If the Chosen Diamond glows, then I am satisfied." He walked towards his desk. I felt curiosity get the best of me and I asked, "Why is it the Chosen Diamond?" I felt air brush against me as Inuyasha's head whipped around to face me. I sort of got the feeling that he really, _really_ didn't want me talking to Sesshourmaru at all.

Sesshomaru's face went blank I couldn't see or feel any emotion coming from him at all. "Just because you are the Chosen does not mean I must waste my breath on your questions for the sake of curing petty ignorance, _human_." Hot blood smothered my head with embarrassment and anger.

Growling growing in vollume interrupted the shocked silence. "Don't...You...DARE--!"

"Be gone! Now." Sesshoumaru hissed.

Inuyasha didn't take his time in leaving and sped out of the doorway. I followed and closed the door behind me.

By the time I had turned around, Inuyasha was far down the stairs. He was jumping over stairs and cursing in the air all the while. My heart skipped a beat when I saw how alone I was. I started down the stairs, holding the diamond carefully.

It was then that I realized that before we entered the room, Inuyasha wasn't afraid, but dreading what insults he would recieve. Possibly he would even be dreading what Sesshoumaru might call _me_. He was tense and angry. I would be too if I was told I had to visit that guy again and there was no choice for me to say "No."

"Inuyashaaa! Hey, wait!" I called out in the darkness. I got no reply in the dark silence and a strange panic thumped through me. Since he was probably already out of the door, what if it closed and I couldn't get out? Maybe I'd be stuck in there with Mr. Insult as my only company and everyone else would just forget there ever was a Chosen.

It was strange how I had come to rely on my title so much at that moment, when I really did hate it very much.

I clutched the diamond tightly in my sweaty hand and tried to make it down the stairs in one piece. It was hot and dark and I could barely see a thing. I felt completely alone. Suddenly, I collided with something stiff. I was about to land backwards on the stairs when someone grabbed me tightly by my wrists and pulled me up straight. I was gasping for air and I looked up through the shadows.

It was Inuyasha.

I stared with a kind of disbelief. My eyes searched around his face. He narrowed an eye at my examination.

"Well?" He said flatly. I blinked a few times. "Well, what?" I asked quietly. He ripped his hands away from my wrists and crossed his arms. "Well, as in, I've been waiting here in the dark like an idiot for you, and there you are, comin' down the stairs like a blind turtle." I tried to close my open mouth. "I thought...I just didn't think that you'd..." His face contorted in annoyance. "Listen, we don't have time to just stand here, so come on." He turned and walked down the last few steps. I stumbled after him in stunned silence. He opened the door and we both walked out.

'_He was actually waiting there? I never thought he'd do what I asked him to unless I did something like...Kneel at his feet, begging and kissing the floor._' I tripped over my feet as we walked towards the entrance that Kaede left through not long before. "Watch your step you idiot." He said arrogantly. Somehow that made me even more stunned, for some _odd_ reason.

"So," I dared to speak. "Where are we going now?" My voice sounded stupid. Well, at least _I_ thought it did.

Stupid self-consciousness.

"Oh," He sort of shouted. He sounded as though he was surprised at himself for forgetting to fill me in. And this change in him occured...How? "We've gotta go to the central tower." He nodded and quickened his pace a little.

"Central tower?" I echoed. "Yeah," He abruptly turned left. I followed. "We get outta here, an' then we go...to the center of the grounds, I guess. To the central tower." We were almost running now. "It's a fat, tall building that looks like a dungeon for prisoners. I hate how it smells..." I smiled a little. "Do you have complaints for everything Inuyasha?" I asked with some sarcasm.

"Mostly, yeah. So?"

I paused.

"Uhh...Nevermind. That's fine. I wasn't saying it in a bad way or anything." He grunted in reply.

Inuyasha skidded out of the room on the wooden floors, his bare feet making harsh squeaking noises. He hopped on one foot to regain his ballance.Once it was regained, he immediately ran up the hall. I almost fell on my face when he went sliding out of the room. I was relieved to see that he didn't notice. The wood floor stretched out with a long rug that was designed with many red, purple and white patterns. It looked extremely expensive. Everything else went unnoticed by me because we were running. I caught sight of a large golden-framed mirror that I gaped at for a moment before I continued running.

We reached the end of the wide hallway and stopped at a large, detailed wooden door with black hinges and locks and an inky handle. Inuyasha jerked it open and the muscles in his arm flexed. I raised my eyebrows for a moment before lowering them.

"You've got some muscle, Inuyasha." He grinned. "Ah, really? Yeah." Arrogant...

Then his face went serious and his eyes had something that just screamed that something was going to be funny. "You will, too."

I chose not to question that at all and followed him out. He closed the door. From there, we walked. The plot of land we walked on was covered in brown sand. It was surrounded in the castle-like city's walls. Like a circular wall protecting us. I smiled at the grey rocky structures and the gothic windows. The sky was the ceiling above us. It was very peaceful there. I felt like I had gone back in time thousands of years and was in medievel times. In the center of the land was a tall tower. The central tower, I assumed.

Inuyasha was right. It _did_ look like some kind of dungeon. '_I wonder what we're gonna do in there._'

"Ready?" He tossed his head towards me over his shoulder and flashed a smirk. I fingered for my pockets and put my hands in them. When I nodded, he openened the old brown door and we walked inside. The room was of course as wide and circular as the tower itself was. I looked up. It went way up to the tip of the ceiling. There weren't any stairs like I thought there'd be. Covering the wall for about twenty feet were weapons upon weapons. Sickles, swords of shapes and sizes, axes, black arrows, hooks, ivory bows...

I looked back down and saw Inuyasha moving forward; shoulders back, head high. I wondered if he was looking strong like that on purpose. My mind wandered for a moment before the sound of a chair moving backwards shifted my attention.

"By my sword...Inuyasha?" It was a muscular, tall man with a shaved head and a fair ammount of stubble on his face. He looked completely human except for his ears. They were flipped upside down and had pointed tips. Small golden rings hung from each one. His shirt was tight and grey, almost mimicking Inuyasha's exactly besides the color. Torn sleeves and all. His pants were long and black, identical to Inuyasha's. He was about two inches taller than Inuyasha and carried a white sword that was tied to his waist by a blue string. I focused my eyes closer on the string and it seemed to be almost...glowing.

Inuyasha smirked and crossed his arms. The man's mouth was open and he was staring at Inuyasha. "You have...Changed so much, Inuyasha." He said quietly. "You look the same." Inuyasha said as if he wasn't surprised at all. "Still an ugly old man, I see." Inuyasha eyed him up and down with a haughty expression. There was silence.

Then the man burst out laughing. "Come 'ere, you stupid whelp." The man laughed. He walked out from behind his desk and grabbed Inuyasha in a hug. He punched his fist on Inuyasha's back, grinning. Inuyasha remained with his arms crossed and tried to jerk away.

I started laughing and tried to quiet myself. I coughed to make myself stop and Inuyasha was jerking away harder than ever. It wasn't a joke anymore. "Get...GET OFF!" He shouted and shoved the man away. The man laughed for a while. Inuyasha smeared his hands around his shirt as if to get the man's hug off. He kept glancing at me and then shooting his gaze away. Embarrassed, I guessed.

"I...I can't believe it. Inuyasha, this...?" The man took on a whole different look. He was serious and all of the boyishness faded from his face to show his true age. He stared at me with a hard gaze and I couldn't break away. I wanted to seem strong in front of this man with so many weapons on the wall...

"The Chosen One." His voice rumbled. He bowed his head to his chest and then looked back up.  
"I am. Or so Inuyasha tells me..." The man looked rather startled like he couldn't believe I spoke or something, maybe it was what I said, but it brought a laugh out of him. He put his fists on his hips and turned to Inuyasha. Inuyasha lowered his head slightly and his ears swiveled around.

"You've done a fine job. You have brought the Chosen and showed everyone what's what, eh, Inuyasha?" He said, smiling. Inuyasha glared at a jagged knife on the wall, mumbling something.  
"Well now, Chosen One, would you do me the honor of sitting in an old chair?" He asked me. I nodded and walked towards the small chair that was in front of the man's desk.

"Oh, hold up!" He said. I looked up with a shock and saw him with his calloused hand outstretched. He walked around to the front of his desk to be by me. "I haven't introduced myself to ya, and I don't ever want to seem rude before the Sacred Chosen."

'_He's polite for such a tough looking man..._' I mused.

"My name's Dens. It means tooth." I nodded, thinking about where his name came from. He continued speaking. "You'd do well to remember that...'cause I just might BITE YA!" He made a motion as if to pounce on me.

Everything happened so fast.

I screamed and threw my right fist forward with all the strength I could muster. I heard an enormous punching sound like some kind of movie sound-effect and saw him get tossed backwards quite a few feet. He landed on his back with a smack and a loud groan.

We all remained in our positions for several minutes. Me, not believeing that I could punch such a strong man back so far, Inuyasha, staring at me in a kind of mixed awe and horror, and Dens, on his back trying to get up, obviously still in pain.

When Dens finally got up, his hand was rubbing his now swelling left eye and his mouth was open and moving.

"I..I am so sorry I startled you, Chosen. Forgive me." He said in a hushed voice. I swallowed and placed a hand over my mouth.

"It's me who should be..Sorry. I had no idea that..." I was grateful to have my hand over my mouth at that time because I was starting to smile. My smile grew and grew. Then I heard Inuyasha make a snorting sound and saw him with his back turned. His whole body was shaking. Dens was still standing there holding his eye. Finally, I could take no more.

I burst out laughing.

I saw Dens face twist and then he joined in. Inuyasha remained with his back turned.

Finally when we stopped, Dens offered me the chair again. Inuyasha was muttering things about how he couldn't believe something or other... Dens sat down in his bigger chair and stared at me through his one good and one swollen eye.

I sighed into the air, glad to be able to sit down for a while.

"So, moving along," Dens started. "I was Inuyasha's master, so-to-speak. I taught him everything I know about fighting. Everything. Right here in this lot." He slammed a fist on the desk. I jumped. "After he completed his years of training, he became a master like me. Or a _sensei_ as he is called. A teacher."

I nodded with a small smile, thinking about the demon boys in the dining hall we walked through.

"I know everything there is to fighting and almost everything there is to know about magic." He said. I nodded quickly. "For what I don't know about magic, Inuyasha doesn't know either. You're going to have to read some books on magic and spell-casters and also learn things on your own." I nodded and watched his grim expression. I was sad to be alone in that subject.

"Well, you'll be training here for quite some time until you get real good. Until that time, you will call me Master Dens or just Master."

I blinked slowly and narrowed my eyes in thought. Me, the _Chosen One_, call _him_ master?

'_Isn't that like bowing to people in a way?_' If it got really annoying, I'd tell him I refused. That was all. '_I'm really starting to grow around my superiority..._' I thought bitterly. "_So,_" I cleared my throat and looked at him. "When do you start training me?" I asked.

He paused and then threw back his head and laughed. "My sword, Chosen. _I'm_ not going to train you. I'm off the job!" He boomed.

My face was ripped from any expression.

"Inuyasha is the one who's gonna train you. _He's_ your master."

My insides grew cold and I stopped breathing.

My neck cricked quietly as I slowly turned my head towards Inuyasha. He was standing in the shadows at the most left side of the room. His arms were crossed over his chest and his head was tilted to his shoulder. His golden eyes glowed in the darkness.

My gaze was met with a fang-filled grin.

'_My life...Is forfeit._'

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**_Insane-san says: _**_Sweet. Another chapter, another day. I was interrupted so many times while writing this it isn't even funny. At all. Yeesh, finally. Reviews please. I enjoy them very much. Thanks for all the reviews so far, dudes! -grin-

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	12. XII

_**Insane-san says: **I am so -blankety- pleased at all of my reviews. Thanks guys. Thanks_ so _much. I _love_ reviews... Oh, and for those of you who have read _Nefarious_, I plan to get on the next chapter soon. I've been addicted to this one and just haven't felt like writing horror, blood and gore. As for _Mindless Theory_, I might not continue it. Maybe, maybe not. It's an if. Like, _iffeh_. Yeah.  
_

_So thanks again for all the reviews and support. I really like you guys... -insert sob speech here-_

_Oh, and I realized something disgusting. I stopped putting in the title and chapter of the fic at chapter nine I think... I will start again now, as you see thus:

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_

**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XII**

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"Right..."

Well that was a shock. My voice actually worked. Go figure.  
"Right." He echoed me low in is throat, still grinning.

My stomach tightened and I opened my mouth to relieve some pressure on the massive lump in my throat. It couldn't have been true. No way, no where, no how could it have been true.

What was this Dens guy thinking? No stinkin' way was I gonna let Inuyasha train me.

...Yeah...He'd _train_ me alright...

'_With a whip and a flame thrower._'

"So," Dens started. "Everything okay here then?" He smiled at me.

I couldn't answer Dens and I couldn't even nod. I attempted to stand but my legs were completely numb. I started wondering...Like, _really_ wondering... Why I was feeling this way? Was the only reason because I was afraid for my life? Or was I nervous for some other reason? My stomach got even more sick the longer I thought about it.

"Well, Inuyasha... Glad to have you back." Dens voice echoed in my head. You should--"

"Hold it!" I shouted. Strength flooded to my legs and I stood up. '_Why am I doing this again...? Oh, yeah!_' I clenched my fists a little and stared into Dens' face. He looked back at me all surprised and whatever.

"This is going way too fast." I said. "Looking back, what was I thinking, leaving without question?" I shouted half to myself, half to Dens. "That guy over there," I shot an arm out towards Inuyasha's direction without looking. God knows I didn't want to look at him at all right then...Not with all of that confusion going on. "drags me along for the ride and doesn't tell me anything. Anything!" I yelled. Dens recoiled in his chair. "Who am I? What am I? Do you think you can force me to..to..._TRAIN_ with _HIM_?" I asked with a straight face. Dens moved his mouth around speechlessly.

"He's _way_ stronger than me, and _plus _he can shoot beams out of his claws!" I yelled.

I heard someone in the background take in air louder than was normal and tried to imagine someone else in the room besides the person who I knew was there.

"And what about my mother? She said she 'knew this day would come' or some other garbage..." Heat rose to my eyes. I flushed her out of my head. "And where in this out-of-control world did Shippo go? One second he was there, and then he wasn't!"

"Chosen, please, calm down." Dens said with sudden firmness. "Everything's going to be okay if you just sit down. I'll talk to you about this. Everything will be fine."

"Everything is not--!" My eyes widened. "...not..." The hair prickled all over my body and a cold chill stroked my shoulders. I felt like my eyes sort of hardened with concentration and I stared at the floor. My arms dropped to my sides. I calmed myself quickly like I always did when something like that happened and stood there, listening.

'_Voices...There are voices..._' I listened harder, closing my eyes. '_A woman._'

I tried to sort out Dens' voice from my mind. I focused on the female's voice and, with another chill, heard, "...Or an axe. _Which shall it be?_ So many to choose from. So many to have fun with..."  
Then I heard a second voice. A guy.

"No, no, my love. Let us play with the large man's sword. It looks so lovely..."  
"Yes, yes! So smart, you are... Who shall we play with...?"

"The boy," The man hissed quietly.

"Let us slice his nasty face in two, yes my love?" The woman giggled in reply.

My eyes snapped wide open and I turned to Inuyasha. '_No!_' I screamed in my head.  
He put a hand up like he wanted to shield himself from my stare and he winced his features slightly.

I was trying to figure out how I would tell him what I heard without him saying,_ "What're you talking about?"_ And just waisting time.

I heard a light _shinnng_ and I spun around to look at Dens. "Dens, hold your sword!" I shouted at him. Pure and undeniable worry grabbed me and wouldn't let go. He raised an eyebrow at me. "Well what for?" He said, smiling a little.

I was about to tackle him to the ground when I saw the white sword hovering in the air in front of Dens. He eyed it, completely freaked out. And so was I. "What in the...?"

'_Why can't I see her? It's as if she's directing the sword without using her hands!_'

I looked at the sword, at the ceiling, towards Inuyasha and then back at the sword. I could see no one.

Then I ran towards Inuyasha. 

I heard the wind from the sword rushing through the air.

With a heave, I jumped forwards and grabbed Inuyasha by his shoulders. The look in his face was priceless, but I don't want to get into that right now...

I pushed him towards the left with all my strength and we went crashing along the floor. We rolled around a few times and I heard the mighty _thud_of the sword stabbing the wall. I gasped at the thought, '_That could have been him._'

I heard the two people shout loudly in anger and then I couldn't feel them there anymore. I swallowed and sighed. My breathing was fast and relief washed over me. At least they were gone.

'_I still don't understand why I couldn't see them. Why would the sword move on its own?_'

I shook off the questions for a while and turned my head to find Inuyasha. I saw that he was directly under me. I was holding onto his shoulders like I was when I grabbed him. I lifted myself slightly and sighed again, glad he was okay. Of course I didn't notice anything else about that situation because I was just _so relieved_...

Geez, I'm dense.

"You okay, Inuyasha?" I asked breathlessly. I stared at him with a smile.

His pupils were paper-thin and his expression was one I hadn't seen before. I couldn't understand what his face said. His eyebrow twitched every now and then. He nodded once very slowly. Most of his face was very red. '_He must have been really freaked out, poor guy. His face is so red... At least I got to him in time._' I sighed to myself.

"That's good." I said quietly. The expression on his face changed after I spoke and he looked so confused. I got sort of embarrassed and pushed myself up and walked backwards a few steps.

I put my hands in my pockets and saw Dens remove his sword from the wall.

"I'm just...speechless." He said. I nodded in understanding. He faced me. "I don't really know what to say. That was such a brave thing to do, Chosen One, and I am thankful that you showed such courage." I smiled and felt my cheeks heat up. He tied his sword back to his waist. "However," He eyed me up and down. "My sword has several spells on it. One being that my sword will cut no one unless I will it to."

'_...What...?_'

"So you see, the sword would have simply bounced off of him..." He chuckled. My mouth opened.

"It...would have...?" I felt so embarrassed. Dens grinned a little. "Yes. Inuyasha actually would have been better off if you hadn't done anything at all. Probably wouldn't have any minor scrapes."

My face heated up and I avoided Dens' gaze. "I should also tell you that you shouldn't worry about Inuyasha at all while you're here. He's alot stronger than he looks and he can very well take care of himself. After all, I trained him." I smiled weakly and nodded, staring at his desk. An irritating itch was in the back of my throat and I was looking anywhere but at Dens. '_Inuyasha was probably angry that I tried to save him or something...I shouldn't have done anything._' A fresh ammount of embarrassment smashed into me.

"Lessons are learned everyday, Chosen girl. Now you know that my sword won't harm any unless I wish it to, and that Inuyasha doesn't need help when--"

"Shut up!" Inuyasha snarled.

I gasped and shot myself around to face Inuyasha.

His shoulders were haunched, his head was raised up, his white ears were quivering, his eyes were flashing light-golden, and his lips were curled up to reveal the scariest snarl. I examined his sharp white teeth for a second and then shot my gaze to the dirty floor.

"How dare you?" He growled, disbelief coated his voice. "How _dare_ you say that to her?"

Dens' jaw was dropped down and he blinked quickly. It looked like it took a moment for him to get over the scare. "Nothing I said...was untrue."

"But it was wrong of you." Inuyasha narrowed his eyes after he spoke. Dens frowned and stared without blinking at Inuyasha. "Dens," Inuysha said suddenly. He tilted his head higher. "You forgot too quickly who she is." Dens closed his mouth and his nostrils flared. I had no idea what to do so I guess I just kinda stood there. Probably like an idiot... Yeah, that sounds right.

"I didn't forget who she was, Inuyasha. I was telling her information that she needed to know."  
"And you disrespected her at the same time, is 'at right?" Inuyasha added quickly. "You are never _ever_ to act so casually with the Chosen ever again. Ever."

Dens didn't look happy at all just then. All of the great muscle in his arms were wincing like crazy and he looked ready for a fight. "I did _not_ disrespect the Chosen."

"Yes you did!" Inuyasha shouted. "You made her out to be a fool when she thought she was saving my life." He snapped, eyes flashing.

All of the fight-look on Dens vanished and to my complete and utter shock,

he bowed _low_ to Inuyasha.

"I am sorry for speaking hastilly, Guardian. I ask forgiveness from you and the Chosen."

My lips parted for a split second and in that time I thought hard.

'_**GUARDIAN?** What's that supposed to be? What? What!_'

Inuyasha crossed his arms and shot air out of his nose.

"He really wasn't doing anything bad." I started embarrassedly. "It was my fault for not speaking clearly when I heard the voices. I should have said what was happening. If I was embarrassed, it was my fault. He really was only telling me usefull information." I reasoned quickly. '_But Inuyasha got so offended...Why?_' I asked myself.

"I forgive you." I said calmly. Inuyasha looked to Dens once more. "I guess I'll forgive you this one time..." He said with that arrogant tone I knew so well.

I smiled thankfully and pressed a hand to my chest with relief. I thought their Master/Apprentice bond would be murdered because of me. I stroked my fingers along the Diamond that rested in my pocket without realizing what I was really doing.

Inuyasha's ears suddenly perked up straight and flipped backwards. He listened carefully.

He made an annoyed face and sighed. "I have to go take care of something really quick. My students are screaming for me." He walked towards the door and grabbed the handle. He clicked the door open. I stood there like, '_What the heck are you doing, going somewhere and not taking me?_'

"Before I forget," Inuyasha drawed out. He glanced over his shoulder. His face had some kind of psychotic laziness thing to it. "Dens, you are forbidden to speak with the Chosen while I'm gone."

Dens fingered the blue-green hilt of his white sword and nodded. Inuyasha closed the door as he left.

I stood there in silence feeling extremely awkward. I couldn't speak to him if he couldn't speak to me...So I was quiet, standing by the door and waiting for Inuyasha to come back.

"I've never seen him act like that before, ya know." Dens said. My eyes snapped open wide and I stared at the door. I didn't want to reply so I remained silent. "Inuyasha has always been either disgustingly loud and cocky, or the entire opposite." I fingered the Diamond in my pocket carefully.

"I haven't seen him treat anyone like that before. Thinking of someone's own well-being besides his own...Inuyasha hates everyone and everything." This man was just asking for death, really loudly.

"Because everyone and everything hated him first." He continued to stare at me. I felt pretty surprised when he said that. I had no idea. No idea at all. How did I know Dens wasn't lying? I could just...feel it. "He was given the job to go and find you because the entire Demon Council knew that he would do everything possible to get you to prove himself. To prove he could be stronger than everyone and do something right." It didn't feel right listening to this guy spill some beans about Inuyasha without Inuyasha being there to tell him if it was right or wrong. I wanted to scream for him to stop because I didn't agree with it, but I really wanted to hear more.

"He was also appointed Guardian. The Guardian of the Chosen One... He's your body guard and he will die defending you." I swallowed hard and closed my eyes. '_Inuyasha..._'

"You were given to him, Chosen. He has more power over you than even the Lord of this city, Sesshoumaru."

'_Oh my God._' I felt my pupils get small again and I felt so..._Weird_.

"I learned just minutes ago how much he is willing to hate any person who tries to act close to you. Even slightly closer than formal." My stomach did a flip-flop and I grabbed the Diamond tightly. "I was so shocked to see how he acted towards me just now. Me, the man who has treated him almost like a son for years. It was..." His face faltered and he spaced out. He shook is head.

"It's good though," He said quickly. "That he has someone he wants to take care of. He's never had to look after anyone but himself for years."

"Okay, that's enough." I blurted out. It was too much information at one time. I wanted to learn those kinds of things from Inuyasha when he wanted to talk to me. When he trusted me enough and liked me.

"I'm not just Inuyasha's toy. He showed me that no one has power over me. Not even him. Sure, he has some power...But I'm the most powerful now. I'm the Chosen One and I won't believe that he shouted at you simply because he looks at me like his possesion!"

Suddenly, the door burst open and Inuyasha was there. His face was unreadable.

"Okay, let's go." He raised and eyebrow and nodded his head to the outside. I stumbled stupidly towards the door and left through it at once. I wanted to know if he had heard anything. He probably heard some of it. I wanted to know how much. My face got red with embarrassment and I swallowed. I walked in front of him and went to the door we came through on our way there.

I was deep in thought. Thinking about...Well, my life basically. About Inuyasha and what I had learned.

"Do you even know where you're--"

"**YAAAAAAHH!**" I screamed and turned around, flapping my arms around. But the owner of the voice, Inuyasha, wasn't there.

'_Where did he...?_' I spun around and then looked up. He was crouched on the wooden slab above the door in a dog-like position, staring down at me with resentment.

My mouth opened by itself and I stared. "How did you..." I brushed my black bangs out of my eyes and tried to see him better through the angry glare of the sun. "...Get up there?" I finished my question with a raised eyebrow. He narrowed his eyes to slits.

"I jumped, what does it look like? Keh..." He pushed himself forward with his hands and fell off the wood, landing easily on his feet. That was pretty cool, but I would rather have died than show what I thought. Taking a few steps towards me he said, "To finish my question before I was," He grit his fangs, loosened up, then sighed. "_Interrupted_...Do you even know where you're going?"

I folded my arms across my chest and sighed. "Sort of." I said in a detirmined tone.

There was silence and then he smirked, very much amused-looking.

"'Sort of,' you say?" His smirk widened. "HAH! What kind of reply is that? How can you say that with such a stiff tone?" He let out a low laugh and continued to stare at me.

"Don't be like that, Inuyasha." I said coldly. My expression softened. "I'm just...Overwhelmed, is all..." I sighed with my mouth closed. "Being the center of everyone's attention...Wouldn't you be?" I asked sort of hopefully. His face grew emotionless and without hesitence he answered, "No." He turned on his bare heel and opened the door. He started walking down the long hall. "You comin' or not?" He shouted back at me.

That..._weird need_ to follow him stabbed me in the chest like a red-hot sword. Not that I really new how that felt, but...I imagined that was how it felt. Well, I guess not. Just forget it!

"Yeah!" I shouted back and sped off through doorway, slamming the musty wooden door behind me.

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_**Insane-san says: **Whoot for another update? Okay... So I really didn't like this chapter a whole lot, but whatever. That's just me. Tell me how you feel and junk in a review! n.n Click the review button down there. Anyone can do it. All you have to do is tell me what you thought and say "DUDE HEY WHAT'S UP YO I LOVE UR FIC." That'd do. Really. Now do it!

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	13. XIII

_**Insane-san says: **This chapter is way later than it was supposed to be... I ripped a tendon in my shoulder and I went through some serious pain. I am still in pain, however, I am feeling better. After this chapter I WILL update **Nefarious**__. I WILL. WILL WILL WILL. Read on, and please review at the end. Because..._

_I said so._

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XIII**

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"Repeat that again, Inuyasha?" I asked timidly.

Inuyasha growled quietly, trying to seal his anger. "Up the stairs, through the right passage, not the left; through the door, down the stairs, through the left passage, left again, left again, up the stairs, up more stairs, go straight until you get to triple door, and straight on to the banquet hall."

'_He says it like it's easy..._' I said to myself saddly. "Umm...One more time, please? Maybe?" I shrunk down at the frusterated look on his face. "For the twenty-third time, girl? No! Twenty-three times should have been enough for a three-year-old to memorize." He fumed.

I clapped my hands together and looked pleadingly at him. "Just one more time?" I asked slowly, raising the pitch of my voice as I pleaded.

His body relaxed and he sighed angrily up into the air. "One more, but that's _it_!" I stared at him and listened closely to the directions, glad that I had won.

"Up the stairs, through the right passage, blah blah; through the door, blah blah blah, blah blah, left again, left again, up the stairs, blah blah blah blah,"

My face paled.

"Blah blah the banquet hall, okay?"

"Ummm...Umm..." Panic held me and I played my fingers together. "Why can't you come with me, again?" I asked quietly. His face twisted into something that I couldn't place, but then it was just an annoyed sneer. "Because I have more important things to do besides eat a ton of _garbage_."

'_Well if _he_ has better things to do than that, then I should too. I'm...I'm not that starving, really... I should ask him if I can go with him...Yeah, I will!_' I thought. My determination rose.

"Inuyasha," I said his name stiffly, readying myself. He raised a black eyebrow. "Yeah?"

I swallowed and eyed him.

"What about my clothes?" I blurted out. He smirked darkly. "If you care about a few blood spots like that, then I don't think you'll do well here." He shook his head and walked past me. I spun around and watched him walk off with his thumbs in his pockets. "One more time, Inuyasha? Those directions..." He disappeared around a corner and I heard nothing from him.

I slapped my cheeks and gave a hard stare at the floor ahead. "To the triple door!" I shouted with fire. My face faltered. "But what came before that...?" I walked fast until I saw a flight of stairs. '_These?_' I wondered. I walked up. My army boots clicked on the shining marble stairs. I tried to resist the urge to remove my boots because I could still feel sand crunching around inside them...

I reached the top and sighed with despair. "The next part was...Think, think!" I gripped the sides of my head. "He only told me TWENTY-THREE times!" I hissed to no one. "Go straight? Or was it right? Left again...but..."

"I see you're finding your way just fine." A voice said with a cocky air. I whipped around and saw Inuyasha.

I could feel heat rising to my neck and ears and I swallowed unpleasantly. "Yes, I am." I quickly recovered.

He smirked and tapped the claws on his right hand against the chain around his neck reapeatedly. One claw at a time hit the chain. My face got more and more tense. I was about to crack, when his smirk faded and he said,  
"You're so hopeless...I guess I'll have to show you the way." He put his arm down and walked past me. "Keep up or I'll leave you behind!" He shouted at me over his shoulders.

I was just so speechless. What made him decide to help me? Oh well, that didn't matter at the time anyway, I was just glad that he decided to, whatever the cause. I smiled broadly and followed him, knowing that even if I was slow, he wouldn't leave me behind.

'_...At least I'm pretty sure he wouldn't..._' I thought darkly to myself. We walked on.

"So...When we first arrived here, why was everyone waiting for us and cheering?" I asked upon a thought. "Well, ya see," I looked up at the back of his head as he spoke. "A magical unicorn with psychic abilities sensed we were both in the land, and then she FLEW to the city and told everyone to prepare a feast." He looked over he shoulder at me with a happy smile.

I remember blinking a lot for some reason. My eyes were dry. "Why do you always have to mess with me?" I asked.

His grin went away completely. I stared into his yellow eyes and watched those slitted pupils. "Because I don't like you."

I swallowed and picked at the dried blood on my shorts. He turned his head and we kept walking. I can't really remember what happened on the way too well, but before I knew it we were in front of a triple door.

"Inuyasha," I sighed with a smile, thanking him countless times in my head. His arms winced as he clenched his fists tightly and he tilted his head a little bit to look behind himself at me. He stared at me through his bangs and cleared his throat quietly.

"Yeah?" He said. "Thanks for waiting around for me..." I said, smiling. He tried to glare at me. "KEH! I didn't 'WAIT AROUND' for you. I was--" I opened the doors and walked through before he could finish.

A sudden confidence was building inside of me as I walked in. '_Hey, this is great! I can smell food! I don't care about my dumb, shredded, bloody clothes anymore. PAH! And who cares about the many, many people sitting around and staring...at me..._'

I stopped dead in my tracks and looked about me. There were several long tables that were connected to eachother in different ways. Demons of all kinds were sitting in every single chair and staring at me. Except for one. Sesshomaru was in a large chair at the farthest end of the room looking down at his claws like he didn't give any cares.

All was silent.

I stood there.

Their surprised faces turned confused. Some where angry, others were unreadable. Then Inuyasha stepped in front of me. He stood there in a kind of, 'I'm the man!' way and crossed his arms. He swept his gaze around the table and then fixed his eyes on a single person. When I found the person he was staring evilly at, I looked at her too, kind of shyly through my hair so I wouldn't seem weird or anything...

She was thin and sat straight up in her chair. It made me think of how I was supposed to sit, or how a princess should sit. I usually kind of slouched forward over my food... She had red eyes and wavy black hair that was held up in a bun. She had _feathers_ in her hair. My nose winced when I saw them. She was wearing an elegant kimono and looked like a pretty picture. Only kind of evil, in some weird way...

My face started burning as I looked between Inuyasha and the girl.

The demons stared; questioning, disgusted, careless, sneering.

Then Inuyasha spoke up in a growling drawl, "This is the Chosen One."

There were gasps and the red-eyed woman's eyes flickered to show shock. She closed her eyes to hide her emotions. Her lips twitched.

After some time, everyone bowed their heads low and then sat back up straight. There were murmurs racing throughout the room and everyone continued to gaze at me. Inuyasha walked towards a tall brown chair with red velvet lining. He sat down and landed in a sloppy position. He glanced towards a chair next to him and flicked his clawed fingers over to it a few times. I got the message and went to sit in the chair.

It was a few seconds before I realized that I was sitting in largest chair of the dining room. Even larger than Sesshomaru's.

This made me smile a little despite the looks I was getting.

It was golden with red and white designs in the seat cushion and arm rests. I stroked my fingers over the soft material of the huge arm rests with a content smile on my face. I looked towards Inuyasha. He had his eyes fixed on the red-eyed woman. He looked like he was extremely deep in thought and angry at the same time.

She smiled mockingly at him and waved air in her face quickly with a white fan. She looked away.

I gripped my fingers into the fibers of the arm rests and gave the side of her face a hard, searching stare. The smell of cooking food grew stronger and more enticing and I felt my stomach growling angrily. The murmuring quieted down and now some demons were just holding quiet conversations with one another.

"Inuyasha, will the food be ready soon?" I asked him without looking. "Tchhh...Have some _patience_, woman." He said loudly and chipped some dried blood off of the claw on his thumb. The murmuring started up again. Everyone was throwing shocked glances at Inuyasha.

I blinked. "Do they not like blood, Inuyasha?" I whispered. He smirked broadly. "Do they not like blood?" He reapeated me in a question. His smirk grew and he stared at me witha disbelieving face. He let out a low laugh.

My heart sped up and I clamped my mouth shut and stared. I couldn't help but wonder what was so funny.

The whole room was completely silent. And I mean _completely_. You could hear a stupid _pin_ drop. The demons were looking at Inuyasha and then me. Inuyasha had gone back to examining his sharp claws. I was still really nervous and feeling weird.

The red-eyed woman was eyeing me strangely. Searching me for something, it seemed. There was an evil presence about her. I could almost feel it sweeping against my skin. The hairs on my neck and arms rose and I stared right back at her. It was like the feeling I would get when I sensed a ghost. Only with her it was warmer somehow...Like when you know you're too close to a fire and you should take a few steps back.

She was three chairs next to me. Just fanning herself. Something was burning my thigh. I reached a hand in my pocket and carressed my diamond as if to calm it down. It only burned more. My throat grew agitated and I couldn't swallow, for some reason. Then, for a split second, the whole room turned into a dark, eery land with no trees and dead leaves and things flying around in the wind. A purple mist was creeping through the air. Then it went away.

I took in a gasp of air and clenched my fingers harder into the arm-rests. My eyes widened and then narrowed.

A questioning glint lit her eyes and then it faded. She closed her fan and placed it gently on her lap. I wasn't aware of anything in the room then except her. She was...not right.

She raised a sleek eyebrow.

I stared at her, unable to speak. I was wondering about many things. Despite my hunger, I wanted to walk out of here with Inuyasha and have him spill everything to me. Everything that I was supposed to do. Even if it meant...Excuse me, _training_ with him, I would have right then.

I felt sort of wrong just sitting there and then I suddenly knew why. I stood up and ignored the sharp intake of air coming from Inuyasha.

I cleared my throat nervously. "Hello everyone. I'm...I'm Kagome Higurashi." I nodded my head a little.

They all gaped at me. Then to my surprise, one by one they stood and introduced themselves.

I just faintly heard Inuyasha muttering curses to each one as they stood.

When I had met with all of them the only one left was Kagura. For a moment I was almost sure that she wasn't going to stand up. But then, she did. She turned to face me and stared straight into my eyes. That flaming, tingling feeling swept against my face and I ignored the urge to gasp and walk backwards. She put out her smooth hand.

"I am Kagura. This city was kind enough to let me stay here when I was alone. I have lived here for a long time."

I nodded. "I'm Kagome Higurashi." I reached out my hand to her. "I-"

Right when my hand reached out, this enormous blast of white smokey stuff came out of my arm, and my arm alone. It slammed into Kagura and pushed her with such force until she reached the far wall. Once she was there, she was actually blasted through the wall.

There was such a shock in me as I had never felt.

My whole body shook and I couldn't bring myself to drop my arm. "KAGOME!" Inuyasha shouted. I snapped out of my spacey state of horror and saw him shaking me. He sighed through his fangs. "I've been shaking you and calling you." He swept his eyes over me.

"What the heck did you think that would do, blasting her like that?" He asked.

"A question I think we'd all like to ask." Came Sesshomaru's drawl from across the room. He was an inch away from the gigantic hole in the wall. He looked completely calm. Everyone else was all scared and staring. "N-n-no, I think I don't want to ask any questions." A small man whispered shakily. Everyone seemed to agree.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and clenched my fingers together. "I didn't mean it. It just...happened, Inuyasha." I murmured to him.

He grabbed my shoulder and led me out of the room. I saw him glance back at the hole in the wall and at Kagura's slumped, dirty form. Blood was spilling out of her sleeve.

"Well, at least you did it before me." He said with a smirk. He closed the door behind us and we kept walking. I didn't know what do to at that point. I was so scared of myself. I was afraid of what I had done. I killed someone and I didn't even think about doing so...

'_I killed someone...I killed someone...I killed someone..._'

My eyes were strained open and my sweaty hands were together. My breath was short and I allowed myself to be led by Inuyasha. Half of the time I wasn't even aware of myself walking. My legs were moving on their own.

"I'll get you to your room and get you some food later, how 'bout that?" He asked. I didn't answer.

He opened a door and we walked into a dark bedroom. He turned on the light. "So I guess now you can wash up and get some new clothes...And sleep, I guess." He yawned and stretched his arms up. He stopped abruptly.

"Hey, it was kinda funny. You just," He put his arm up. "Put your arm up and BAM. She dies." He laughed.

My stomach gave an awkward churn. If it had been on a movie or in a book, I would have laughed.

But I killed a woman.

"Kagome, she wasn't an innocent person. She was an evil lady who was gonna die by my hands sooner or later. You just got to her first is all." I winced and walked towards the bed. I didn't look at my surroundings just then. I was to absorbed in my own world.

"Okay, go take a bath or somethin'. You're makin' me mad." He said with frustration.

I nodded slowly and walked towards the bathroom door. I walked in and closed the door behind me. I stood in that large bathroom with shaking hands and wincing eyelids. I knew once I got over the shock, what followed wouldn't be fun.

I look back and it's scary how alone I felt when I was in that bathroom.

I felt myself sinking down to the floor.

Right when I was about to be eaten by my own thoughts, the bathroom door popped open.

* * *

_**Insane-san says: **Woof. There's the chapter. Now massage my shoulder while you review it. oo

* * *

_


	14. XIV

_**Insane-san says: **Well, I had a lovely time in NYC. Well...Not as good as I could have. I'm like, so negative when it comes to that trip. I had **PMS** the whole time so that didn't help. Because of that, I can't really point out ONE GOOD THING that happened. Except for the Saw-playing lady...Yes, she actually played a saw like a violin. In the train station.  
I played with real snow for the first time ever. I don't think I wish to go again. At least not in such cold weather. IT WAS MURDER. Thank God for the hot weather where I live...Those New Yorkers need to abandon their homes and move somewhere else. Like...Hawaii._

_I think I'll move there too.

* * *

_

**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XIV**

* * *

I turned around, imediately putting on a straight face. I automatically assumed it was Inuyasha. And you know what _assuming_ does...

I went into my lecture voice. "Inuyasha, when a person's in the wash room you can't just... " My eyes tightened. "Inuyasha?" No one was at the door. It was opening slowly as if the wind was pushing it open. I stood up and stepped quietly out of the bathroom. "Is somone..." I searched the room fully with my eyes and saw no one. Then in a quick movement, I pulled the door back to see if someone was behind it.

No one was there.

"If someone's in here, you'd better get out! I'm the, uhhh...The Chosen One!" I walked further into the bedroom until I was at the foot of my enormous bed.

"You'd better think twice about this. I'll kick your butt!" I swallowed even though I had no saliva. My hands were getting sweaty and I guess I decided that the door wasn't totally shut to begin with and it just popped open.

I massaged my wrist slowly and then wondered why I was doing so. I looked down at my wrist and saw a _nasty_ dry tentacle gripping it tightly. It was like a root, almost. A thin, evil, brown root. I gasped and stumbled backwards onto my bed. I clenched my trembling hand deep into the red blankets and took in rasping breathes. I looked at it in a horrified kind of way for a few seconds. I'm sure anyone would do that if they were in my place. I had to decide what it was and what I needed to do about it.

I thought about cutting it off of me. I grabbed my diamond and started trying to cut the root off. The root broke, and on top of that, it kind of...disintegrated. I smiled with relief even though my eyes were still tear-filled. I stood up and pushed myself off of my bed. "Well I don't think I want _that_ to happen ever again. Hah...Hahah...I took care of _that_ alright...Let's see _tha_--YAAAAAH!"

I was suddenly lifted off my feet. I hung in the air by my ankles like some kind of dying dolly. My black hair brushed against the floor like my head was a broom. I tried to bring myself up and saw two larger roots wrapping around my legs. "What _is_ this?" I choked. The roots ripped my up higher into the air until my feet were touching the ceiling.

_Way _up high. Very, very high up. If I fell, I knew that I would be in trouble.

I felt the heat of my blood in my head and I felt my nose become congested. No one was around but me and the roots, so I didn't act like a sissy to keep my shirt up. My bra showed, so what? I was having a serious problem.

If I cut the roots, I'd fall. If they unwrapped themselves, I'd fall.

'_Think, think, think! What am I gonna do? Talk to them! ...Roots don't have __brains, you idiot!_' Once realized I was fighting with myself, everything went even more wrong. I got very pessimistic when usually I was optimistic.

"Stop doing this to me! What do you want?" I fidgeted around and allowed myself to swing through the air. "I don't want to die this way! Someone help me!" It was getting harder to yell because my head was basically suffocating from all of the blood. Sweat was steadily dripping from my face.

'_Broken bones are better than death._' I reached in my pocket and pulled out my diamond. With whatever strength I had, I lifted myself up and aimed for the root. Out of nowhere, another root shows up, grabs the diamond, and lets itself disolve.

That was great and all, but my diamond fell to the floor with the root. I was way too high up to even think about the possibility of reaching it. I let myself drop down and I sighed loudly. "Whoever's playing this trick, _stop_! I'll...HURT YOU, DARNIT!"

I swung around and around in annoyance.

Then without even thinking about it, I screamed, "_INUYASHAAAA_! HELP ME! Aren't you my GUARDIAN?" I stopped wriggling and let myself think about what I said. '_Now why didn't I think of him before? I should have been more--_'

"_KAGOME!_" I gasped at the loudness my voice was called in. "What's wrong? Answer me!" I heard a familiar voice echo from outside my room. I heard the sound of feet slipping on the marble floor and his pounding footsteps as he came closer to my room.

'_I wonder where he was when he heard me..._' I wondered. "I'm a little bit hung up, Inuyasha!" I yelled weakly. I was about to pass out. The roots chose that exact time to release me. I felt the air of my fall rushing against me. It felt so cold against all of my sweat. I would probably pass out before I hit the ground.

I heard the door smash open.

Someone cried out in surprise.

Strong wind.

An evil laugh that made my blood freeze...

Then it was black.

* * *

I felt my eyes start opening by themselves. I was moving. Not by myself, though. I was being carried. There were shouts coming from every direction. A cool wind was blowing against me. Something soft was brushing against my face. I smelled smoke and water. My mouth was dry and my hands were clutching something tightly. My senses were coming back but my blurred vision didn't clear. 

I discovered that I was on Inuyasha's back. His hair was whipping behind him and he was running _fast_. Then I realized that my vision was blurred because of the speed I was moving at. I saw very little but I knew we were running away from that gigantic castle city. We were getting farther away. Flames were everywhere. Even where Inuyasha was running there was fire on all sides. Great pillars of smoke rose up into the sky. People were screaming in fear and pain. People were yelling for water. People were running out of the city...

I wanted to shout out to release some emotion but my voice wouldn't work.

I was very sad to see all of that.

I saw that my arms were around Inuyasha's neck and I was clutching onto his shirt. I tried loosening my hands but they were stuck and shaking. "Inuyasha...What happened?" I managed to ask.

"It's my fault..." He mumbled angrily. "Everything's my fault...Everything...I couldn't...I was too..." He jumped over fallen burning trees, jumped into burning trees, barely touched the ground at his speed... And he continued mumbling. "Your fault? What happened? What's happened, Inuyasha?" I looked back at what little I could see of the castle. The very top of it...Was just crumbling down. I knew it was gone.

"He was there the whole time...I didn't sense...I couldn't have known...He's too...There was no time." My eyes filled with tears at his state. He was always so confident and cocky at everthing. His eyes were wide and shaky and it seemed like he was moving by some other kind of force...Like he wasn't aware of himself moving. He just...was.

After that, we went in silence. He stopped mumbling and just ran.

Hours passed. I was in such shock the whole time. I had gone to that city, accepting the fact that I would be there for a long time. I had worried about something...In the bathroom. I couldn't think of it. Then I felt so bad because Inuyasha had lived there. That was where he lived. It burned down.

"Inuyasha, when will we stop? We've been running the whole night." I couldn't see the smoke in the distance anymore. Either the fires had stopped, or we were just so far away.

"You must be tired, Inuyasha..." He said nothing.

"I'm really,_ really_ hungry. I haven't eaten in such a long-" I gasped loudly as he stopped completely. I heard him sniff and he turned to face the right. He stood there for several minutes staring in that direction. Then he ran towards whatever he had decided to aim for.

He ran and ran. I fell asleep on him a few times. When I woke up, it was probably about one in the afternoon. Maybe later.

My stomach pained me so much. My thighs were chaffed and raw from rubbing against Inuyasha's shirt and from the cold wind. It was no use talking to Inuyasha. I didn't even want to try a few words of comfort because he wouldn't hear me. What would I say if I tried? I didn't know what to say. He was the only person I was with at that time.

We were very close to some mountains. Tall, black ones. It was like someone stuck some _massive_ rock formations in the middle of a forest. Inuyasha stumbled and then caught himself. I pushed myself up a little. "Are you okay?" He didn't answer me. "Stop ignoring me, Inuyasha! I want to stop! I'm starving. You've been running way too long...I'm worried, okay?" He stumbled again and gave me no reply.

"That's it! I'll jump off. I swear I will. I swea-"

"Don't you even think about it." He growled quickly. I could hear the hoarsness in his voice from him not talking for so long. My heart leapt to my throat and it stayed there for more time than it should have. "I will think about it. I'll think about it for your sake."

Again I was ignored. That was the last straw. I punched his shoulder with my right fist over and over yelling, "Stop right now, Inuyasha! Stop! We need to--" I heard howling. The howling of wolves I was sure. It was loud and echoing through the trees. Several wolves joined in. Then more wolves joined in. But these were strange and didn't sound quite right. They were deeper than the other howls. We got closer and closer to the howling. I saw trees moving ahead of us as Inuyasha ran through the dense forest.

He jumped up and broke through the trees. Leaves were blown off their branches and one even cut me from the speed of his jump moving through them. He landed on short grass and I felt his body vibrating. He was trying to keep himself standing up. He breathed heavily through his mouth and his ears were moving like crazy. We were right in front of all of these crazy black mountains. It was like a forest oasis kind of. There were waterfalls, streams, a big lake and grass everywhere. I saw wolves all over the place. And wolf people, too.

"Well, well, well." I heard. I looked up to one of the cliffs above us and saw the first wolf demon I met before. It seemed like years ago.

"Koga..." I said. I blinked up at him and saw that his expression was different. He looked strangely panicked.

"If it isn't the mutt-faced Inuyasha comin' over to see if I can play." He smirked and narrowed his eyes down at us. Inuyasha didn't make eye contact with him. He stared straight forward at one of the streams. "Some of my wolves said they saw your place on fire." He crouched over even more. "You smell like smoke so I guess it's true. Set your place on fire, Inuyasha?" He said with a sneer.

Inuyasha hesitated at first, but then he started walked towards the thick waterfall that poured down in front of the tallest mountain. All of the wolves around us started growling. Koga waved his hand to silence the wolves. "Hah! This is hilarious. What do you think you're doing, Inuyasha?" He snapped. Inuyasha gave no answer as we neared the waterfall. I desperately wanted to be put down, but at the same time I didn't.

"Inuyasha!" He shouted. He jumped down off of the cliff and landed on his feet. "Get that Chosen off your back and face me. What are you _doing_?" He threw out his arm and pointed a clawed finger to us. "Take one more step closer and you see if I don't decide--"

"What's that?" Inuyasha gasped out and he stopped. He grabbed me off his back and put me in front of himself. I was shocked at the quick movement and was mad that he decided to fight Koga. "Who did that?" He said loudly. I tripped and sat on my backside. I saw the wolf demons looking around at themselves. Koga's eyes were bulging out of his head and he dropped his arm. "Did what?" He spoke up.

Inuyasha knelt down and grabbed my face. When that happened it felt like the sun decided to trade places with my head. "Blood..You're bleeding." I felt my lips moving and tried to force my heart back down. "Th-that...That was...A leaf cut me." I said quickly.

"Leaf?" He snapped. I nodded dumbly. "A..A leaf. When you were running...It cut me. I'm okay." He let me go and stood up. "Just a leaf." He mumbled. I rubbed my cheeks like they itched when I was really trying to make the blush go away. I saw a shadow over me and looked up. I almost screamed when I saw Koga standing next to Inuyasha.

He stared at Inuyasha for a few seconds and then said, "You can stay for up to three days. If you're not gone by then...Then I..." He clenched his fists and narrowed his eyes. "I won't be responsable for the things my wolves will do, alright?" Inuyasha stood in silence. Everyone waited there like they just knew he was going to say something.

I stumbled back onto my feet and sort of...Saluted to Koga. Kind of. I think it was a proper salute...Anyway, Koga nodded and then I felt something odd happen. I was being moved backwards. I blinked. "What the...?" I tried to turn around. Inuyasha was pulling the back of my shirt so I would move and we were headed towards the waterfall.

"Inuyasha! Stop! I don't wanna get--" We went through the waterfall. "...wet." I groaned. The watefall had been the doorway to an enormous cave. It looked huge to me, but there was no telling how many tunnels and things were in it so it was probably much bigger. I never saw for myself.

"Woaaaah, Inuyasha! I never thought I'd see a cave like this! It's huge! It's beautiful!" The wolf demons that were in the cave were kind of laughing embarrassedly and glancing around. "Are we gonna sleep in here? Wow!" I clapped my hands together and spun full-circle to get a good look at the cave.

Inuyasha turned around a corner There was almost like a room there in the rock wall. A huge mass of fur and straw was on the floor. He dropped onto the edge of it in a cross-legged position. I saw his legs shaking as he sat. My legs would have been shaking if I had run so much... His legs must have been burning. Either that, or numb.

He glanced up at me and nodded his head towards the mound of fur. I happily sat on my knees and played with a long piece of straw. I opened my mouth to say something to Inuyasha, but his eyes were closed.

I stared up at the damp rock walls and the stalagmites...I heard the faint dripping of water from the ceiling of the cave. The drops echoed peacfully around me and I felt my eyes start closing. I felt myself slipping into a sleep caused by exhaustion and illness. A loud slapping noise woke me from my daze.

"Waaah! That's a great kill, you guys!" Someone shouted excitedly. Inuyasha's eyes opened slightly and his nose winced. I was about to talk to him again, but the shimmer in his golden eyes vanished and he closed his eyes.

I stood up and walked out of the room. I looked back to see if I had woken Inuyasha, but he was still asleep. I was afraid he'd suddenly jump up and tackle me to the floor because he thought a drop of water would blast my head off.

Ahh, I shouldn't joke like that. He went through a lot that day and he did have a certain duty to fulfill by protecting me...

"Hey, Chosen lady, you're hungry, right?" A wolf demon called out to me. I walked closer to the growing crowd of wolves and demons. They seperated so I could get through, staring at me with curious eyes. Plopped in a bloody heap before me was a gigantic pig. It was...It was...I can't describe it. It was ugly, though. Slashed and bloody with a spear through its head.

"Chosen Lady, what's your name?" One asked, putting his face right up to mine with a boyish expression of interest. "Yeah, Chosen Lady, what?" Another asked. I tried to smile and blinked. "Uhh...Kagome." They looked at me with grins and nodded. "Knock it off, you guys. Outta my way." I heard Koga's irritated voice bang out through the cave. Everyone there jumped or ran out of his way right after he spoke. He stood behind the pig and stared down at it.

His shoulders were back, his fists were clenched, his head was pointed down towards it and his blue eyes looked so bright like they were glowing. The light coming in from behind the waterfall outlined his body. To tell you the truth, he looked very dangerous. I started scratching my head out of nervousness. He looked up at me. My heart started beating faster. At that moment, I knew he wasn't just some guy who acted like Inuyasha's rival...He must have been more. It made me scared to think about both his and Inuyasha's past.

What were they?

What was a demon, really?

He bent over suddenly and, pretty much quicker than my eyes could catch, ripped off one of the pig's back legs, thigh and all. He let the red blood pour down until it slowed to a few steady drips. He handed it out to me. "Here. This is your share." He smirked like it was something funny.

"Ah..." I walked forward. I slipped on some blood trying to get closer to the leg and luckily caught myself. "Thank you." I grabbed the thick hoove oddly and stepped backwards. The weight of the leg was so much that I couldn't lift it up. My arms were almost touching the ground. I stared at the leg for a while deciding what in the _world_ I was going to do with it.

When I was far back enough, all the wolves came down and crowded around the pig.

It was just like a huge wolf pack digging into their dinner... It was raw and there was snarling and shoving. I turned around with that huge leg and sort of...Waddled back to the _room_ Inuyasha was in. But then it hit me when I saw the room there in front of me.

'_What the heck am I going to do with a raw, bloody pig's leg?_'

So I stood there, staring at Inuyasha's sleeping self... I scrunched my nose up and thought hard about where I could build a fire. If I got one going, IF...I had no idea how to cook an enormous demon pig's leg. '_Maybe it's just like chicken in a pan. Only...Bigger._' I thought to myself. I almost woke Inuyasha up to help me but then I decided that I needed to look out for myself.

I slipped on the trail of pig's blood I left as I walked out of the room. I caught myself before I fell and walked slowly through the waterfall. I gasped as the cold, pounding water smashed into me. So then I was completely soaked in water and pig's blood. I looked like someone tried to wipe a dirty floor up with my body.

I dropped the leg on the grass and looked around desperately for some wood to build a fire. Even though I had no lighter nor did I have a match, I was determined to make a fire. I ran around picking up various twigs and branches that had fallen from the trees that surrounded the mountains. I had them all in a nice pile.

So I sat there.

Staring at the wood.

Growing hungrier and hungrier.

At that point I was so hungry I actually seriously considered just eating the leg raw. It was slimy with blood and little blades of grass stuck to the bottom of it. Not a single demon was around anywhere. They were all in the cave eating. Everyone was eating except for me. I frowned and clenched my stomach. Tears began to build up in my eyes and I whined a little.

I picked up a stick and threw it into the pile of wood. "Stupid wood! Why won't you just light by yourself? Just light! _Come on_... Please?"

As I pushed myself up, a wave of hungry desperation overwhelmed me and I felt so angry and tired. I closed my eyes tightly and cried out loudly. I kicked the pile of wood I had made so nicely and it scattered out in a line. When I opened my burning eyes I saw fire.

'_Oh, gosh...I must be so angry I'm seeing flames! I thought that was only an expression! I need to seriously calm down._' I took a deep breath but then I cut it short. I could feel the heat of the flames. Every single little twig and branch was lit with a flame. I dropped to my knees in disbelief and looked around for the person who could have done such a wonderful thing for me.

Once again, I had to come to the scary but amazing conclusion that I was the one who had done the thing. I steadied my gasping breathes and grabbed the pig leg with a shaky arm. It was probably about as big as I was from the waist up. I plopped it onto the center of the undying flames and watched it cook. I smiled and smeared some sweat off of my face.

'_Being the Chosen isn't so bad after all I guess._' Sure. I told myself that then. But I had absoloutly no idea at that time what I really was.

Or what I was really supposed to do.

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_**Insane-san: **I hope that chapter was long enough to be an apology for a rather late chapter. -throws rose petals around- Please review or no more chapters! n.n __I'm serious._

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	15. XV

_**Insane-san says: **Well, I'm pretty much happy because someone out there said I was "an amazing author." So for you, my dear reviewer...I present you with this quote of idiocy:_

Most lies about blondes are false.

- Unknown

_I love everyone else out there who's reading this right now...I really...REALLY love you. Just because I don't dedicate idiotic quotes to you doesn't mean I don't read your reviews... -froclics and throws paper hearts around- _

_This is the last chapter untill the new year. Merry Christmas and happy new year. PRESENTS. WOO. -headdesk- _

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XV**

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I prodded that fat pig's leg with a little stick over and over again.

"How am I supposed to know when it's done?" I whined quietly to myself. The blood on it had dried and most of it had flaked off. It smelled surprisingly good. I forced myself not to sniff too deeply because that was making me drool. My grandfather used to say, 'If it's black, it's cooked.' I thought about that for a second before shoving it away from my mined. Black meat? I didn't want to eat that...

Who would?

"Just a little more..." I poked and pushed it over a little bit. Then I started hearing this kind of fizzing sound. I leaned closer to the meat. It fizzed louder and louder. It suddenly split open and let out a large puff of steam. I jumped backwards with a yelp and nearly caught my foot on fire.

"Well," I said, standing up and dusting myself off. "I guess that means it's done." I stared warily at the pig's leg and then pushed it out of the fire with my poker stick. I kicked loads of dirt on the fire to put it out. I kicked here and there and even grabbed dirt from the ground and tossed it all on the flames that stretched out in a line across the grass.

I ran through the waterfall and reached the inside of the cave with an enormous gasp. My body convulsed with a shudder from the cold water. The water in my boots squelched annoyingly with each step. It was getting so hard to lift my feet. I had forgotten about the sand in my boots and now there was water. 

'_Oh great, my favorite boots have been turned into a complete beach resort._' I thought unhappily as I stumbled into the room Inuyasha slept in. I sat down and tossed the leg onto the edge of the bed. I pulled my boots off and leaned them against the cave wall. I sighed uneasily as I looked down at myself. I wondered for a long time when the next time I'd get some new clothes was.

When I looked up, I saw that pig's leg. Instead of feeling the need to eat it, I felt the opposite. It had started to sink in. The thought of me creating fire with my foot. I grabbed one of my wet toes and stared at it. '_I don't think fire litterally came out of it...I think fire was sort of formed there...somehow...That's only reasonable. But at the same time, it's...impossible!_' My eyes glazed over as my thoughts started to crowd my mind.

"Is staring at your feet a hobby of yours?" An obnoxious voice shattered my troubled thoughts. I let go of my foot and stared at Inuyasha. My face lit up like a Christmas tree. Apparently I had forgotten one crucial detail when I walked in this room.

"No!" I blurted out. "I just had a...Oh, nevermind!" I stood up and walked in front of the leg. I sat on my knees in front of it and ripped off a piece of the flesh with my fingers. I took a small bite of it and swallowed it down. I stared down at the meat I had in my hands and then thought of how hungry I was. Why was I taking small bites?

I glanced at Inuyasha for a fragment of a second and saw him staring straight at me. '_What is _he_ looking at?_' I took another bite. And another and another. At that moment, I finally realized how hungry I was. I was scared of that hunger so I at as much as I could hold.

When I was full, there was less than half of the leg left. I was kind of scared and outraged when I saw it. I was thinking, '_Who came in here and ate all of this meat?_'

"Where'd you get that leg, anyway?" Inuyasha asked rudely, as if I had been touching something dirty. I turned my head and said, "Some of the guys killed it." Inuyasha let out a quick laugh. "'The guys,' huh?" He asked. I frowned and rested my hands on my lap. I wasn't used to handling people who acted like him. I kept getting embarrassed. I think it was peer pressure...Most people I talked to at school and stuff were nice. They were either my friend and thought me a good person, or I never spoke with them before.

"I don't want to call them 'demons' because a demon is something different to me...And I don't want to call them 'wolves' because they aren't animals." Inyasha curled his lip in a smirk."That's one of the dumbest things I've ever heard." He said.

I sighed heavily through my nostrils and layed down on the soft bed. I curled up against myself with my back to Inuyasha. I was self-conscious about people looking at my sleeping face. Expecially _that_ guy. 

"Good night, Inuyasha." I said sleepily with my eyes closed. I didn't recieve a reply. I felt the lump in my pocket where my diaomond rested. I took a last deep breath of the wet rock-scented air before I fell asleep.

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Voices were bouncing around in my head. Blurry fog and a wet kind of darkness surrounded me. The voices slid in and out of my head. Like some kind of animal that was trying to cry out, but was reluctant to. I felt my eyes moving behind my eyelids and I took in a small gasp of air. I kept seeing a face in the fogginess. It was malicious. A nasty face with a twisted smile. Long dark hair.

It was coming towards me. Slowly. I ground my teeth and felt a drop of sweat roll down my cheek. The voices got louder and more solid and the evil figure got closer every second that went by. I felt cramped in both my legs. A drop of water hit the ground and echoed through my head. It was so loud. Like a boulder being thrown into the ocean but someone turned up the vollume to max.

Someone was calling me. The figure was almost right in front of me.

"Chosen girl, you in there?"

I cried out and sat upright. "Wha...What? Yeah?" I whipped my head around. Inuyasha sat against the wall. He stretched out uncomfortably and winced his features. His ears shifted backwards and stood up. I smacked a hand over my chest and felt my heart pounding loudly. I touched my fingertips to my forehead and felt sweat. I wiped it off with my sleeve carelessly and looked up to the entrance of the little room I slept in.

There were many voices coming from outside of our room. Howlings, whines, shouts, laughter...I sucked in air and yawned.

Koga appeared in the entrance. "Ah, so you are here. I thought I heard you." I stared at him with an unamused face. "You look a little...are you alright?" He raised a black eyebrow and glanced up and down my face. I sighed with a weak smile. "Ahh...Yes. A bad dream."

He tightened his hair band and said, "Well that's too bad. Dreams are dreams, ya know? Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to come out and help us get some breakfast. You have all those powers and stuff." He put up his hands. "If you want to, that is."

I blinked and felt my mouth open. "Umm...Uhhh...I'm not really sure what-"

"What Inuyasha wants you to do?" He asked. "Don't worry about it. You're supposed to be doing what you want. Am I right?" Those words shot something off in my head. Like a little fire cracker. "Maybe you're right. I think that's what...I was told."

"When that mutt wants to sleep, he's out for a _while_. He only fell asleep a couple hours ago." I looked over at Inuyasha and rubbed my eyes with the backs of my hands. "Oh, did he?" I stifled another yawn. "I'm not good with all this power stuff yet...You'd probably be better off on your own." I said with a frown. "Sorry." I felt a strong regret in my chest. Like the feeling you get when you're sick and have to stay home but your family wants to go to a theme park so they go without you 'cause they have tickets and your mother doesn't care about her own sick child and she...

...Well that happened once. I'm just trying to say it was the feeling I had... And I was kind of upset and confused as to why I was feeling that way.

Koga made an irritated click in his mouth and crossed his arms with lowered eyebrows. "Well, I kinda wanted you to come along. Maybe you're good at hunting and you just don't know it yet. Even if you're not, you could just come to watch...It's not like you won't have protection..."

This guy was so tricky. He was somehow making it so I wanted to go. His powers of persuasion were shocking, but I knew I was giving in. He stared at me with unblinking blue eyes and I felt my mind being taken over.

"Well...I...Guess it couldn't hurt...I'll just wake up Inu..." I stared at the place Inuyasha had been sleeping. He...Wasn't there anymore. I felt my breath quicken and a strange sense of panic flooded my body. "...Yasha?"

Where was Inuyasha? What was I going to do? Where did he go? I felt my hand move up over my heart.

I spun my head around to Koga to see if he had something in mind.

That odd sensation of feeling my pupils shrink came on me. I stared at Koga in utter amazment. He was...

Scared.

My lips parted and I made some kind of quiet noise. Maybe Inuyasha had somehow died mysteriously.

Koga's eyes were wide and terrified. He couldn't move. Something had stunned him so completley...

'_What am I gonna do? What if Inuyasha's gone forever? What will happen to me? What will I do? Inuyasha!_'

I felt like I was being spun around in a whirlpool and I was going to die.

Then, so suddenly, out of thin air...Like he was born out of air itself...There was Inuyasha directly behind Koga. His pointed white claws were pressed directly at Koga's jugular. His face was above Koga's shoulder and I became shockingly aware of the muscle in Inuyasha's arms. Koga's mouth opened wider and he still didn't move.

Inuyasha's lips quivered through his growl and I heard his voice. "If you ever play your tricks on Kagome again...I'll cut you down like that breakfast you wanted. Only I'll do it slower. And more painfully. You hear me, Wolf?" I could barely tell his words apart from his growl, but I heard them. I heard them loud and clear. Koga did too. More clear than I did, I was sure.

Koga nodded stupidly. He was so stunned. Like someone had just hit him in the head with a sledge hammer and he was in a mix of shock and pain. Inuyasha released Koga from his death trap. Koga gasped in air and then clamped his jaw shut. He narrowed his eyes and swallowed hard. He looked at me with such a confused expression, and then over at Inuyasha. Then he left.

I stood up quicker than I expected I would and I found myself fingering my diamond nervously.

I wanted to say something, but I think I was too embarrassed. Or scared or something...I noticed that I was getting more and more twitchy every time I saw and talked to that guy. I was way too terrified to think about why, so I didn't.

'_Maybe a simple thanks would be good...That would be stupid, what am I thinking? Thanks for what? Thanks for not being dead? I should say sorry...I could just ask him about breakfast. Maybe we...should leave or something. What do I say? He's just standing there with his head over his shoulder._' I thought to myself. "You sleep okay?" I blurted out.

He flicked his golden eyes over at me and I examined the slits that were his pupils. "Why do _you_ want to know?" He asked in a low voice. I felt my insides heat up. I frowned, feeling angry. "It was just a question. Sometimes when people ask you questions it's nice to give an actually _pleasant_ reply." I retorted calmly. "Keh. You don't think I make pleasant replies? What's a pleasant reply to you, huh?" He asked with a _fair_ ammount of sass in his tone.

I shifted my weight to my left leg and clasped my hands together. My eyes wandered to the ceiling of the cave and I sighed. "Well," I began. "A person who was going to reply to that kind of question would usually just say something like, 'I slept okay. Thank you. And what about you?'" I looked at him and smiled. "It's not really that hard. It's not like I asked you a rude question, right?" I waited for his reply.

"Pleasant?" He asked. He crossed his arms over his chest and his head fell a little to his shoulder. "Well..." I smiled more.

"I slept terribly. It felt like I was wakin' up every three minutes after I fell asleep. I had more nightmares than I think I can count. Each one I can remember with _graphic_ detail. They may be more than a human could handle, come to think of it, so I don't think I'll be telling you them."

My heart sank and my hands droppd to my sides.

"Thank you!" He continued in a fake act of cheerfulness. "And what about you?" I played with my fingers and searched for words.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Inuyasha...You've been through a lot. I can...understand what you're feeling--"

"You don't understand anything about how I'm feeling. You can't know how I feel because you aren't me."

Tears welled up in my eyes and I stared at the rock wall, trying to hide my emotions.

I think I failed.

Whenever I tried to break through and be nice, he always did something to win the situation over to his little side over there in the darkness. Patience was a virtue however, and I convinced myself that I had enough for him.

"I know...How it feels to have bad dreams, Inuyasha." I said quietly, swallowing to hide the crack in my voice. "I think I understand a little better than you think." There I was just minutes before thinking of how glad I was that he was alive, and here he was making me feel all...Sad and stuff...Man...

"Is that so?" He asked. "Tell me then. What do you understand about me? How am I feeling?" His feet were planted in the ground like he was ready for whatever I had to say.

"You're feeling hurt about your home. Like you failed...You're angry and scared--" I gasped when I realized Inuyasha was right in front of me looking me directly into the eyes. Our bangs were touching.

"I..._Never_...Get scared. You remember that." His voice was low and scary and totally penetrated my mental peace.

He then fastened the string on his back pocket tightly and walked towards the entrance of the room. "C'mon." He called. I grabbed my boots and ran out after him. I took one big sniff to clear my teary snot.

"Hey," I heard his voice and stopped. "put those garbage shoes down." I raised my eyebrows in irritation and said, "First of all, stop yelling at me and telling me what to do. Secondly, I need these boots! I can't walk without shoes." He rolled his eyes and started walking again as I dumped the watery sand from my boots.

"I'll get you some new shoes!" His voice echoed around the deep walls of the cave. "Those are dead."

I sighed heavily. "I just bought these a few days before you _forced_ me out of my own home, thank you very much. They were expensive and I won't just leave them behind. They'll dry!" I calmed my breathing with a smile and felt a little completed at getting that off my chest.

"Fine. Whatever! Your feet'll be bleeding in a few days, but I guess that doesn't matter to you." He said, waving a hand in the air.

"Oh, and it matters to you?" I asked with raised eyebrows. "Yeah," He said. My mouth opened and my heart sped up. "'cause I don't wanna be smelling your nasty blood." I gripped my fists together and slammed my mouth shut.

"Right! Then where are you gonna get me new shoes, Inuyasha? Are you going to make them pop out of the ground like a gopher?" I shouted with frustration. "You can't just get shoes wherever...you..." Inuyasha was right behind a wolf demon and was checking out his feet, it looked like.

I was kind of like...'_What!_'

Inuyasha then grabbed this random guy's ankle, lifted his leg up into the air causing the poor demon's head to crash into the rock floor. He yelped out and wriggled around. Inuyasha ripped off the guy's shoes and then dropped his legs.

He walked over to me and held them out. "There. Put those on." I stared in a horrified way at these shoes. '_That poor demon man..._'

"I'll get you better ones once we hit a town if you love shoes that much." He said arrogantly. He put a hand in his pocket and walked towards the waterfall. "Let's go!" He shouted without looking back. I stared at the wolf demon on the ground who was rubbing his head like crazy, growling quietly.

"Umm...I'm sorry." I said. "I don't think he'll let me give them back, so..." I glanced down at the shoes. They were a boot-style shoe made with a thick brown leather and they had these little spikes on the bottoms made out of some kind of metal. Or bone or something... They had black fur trimming.

I couldn't help but think, '_Inuyasha has nice taste, I guess._'

"Sorry!" I shouted as I ran for the waterfall. I shielded the boots with my arms as I broke through the water. When I got to the other side, Inuyasha was shouting at a random wolf demon. Something about being stupid for getting in his path or something...

'_Typical arrogant Inuyasha,_' I thought to myself. '_Not a nice bone in that one's body..._'

I hopped along as I struggled to get those boots on. They fit a pretty well. They might have been a little bit small, but not by much. I straightened myself up and shook my foot around. '_Why couldn't my guardian be a nice guy?_' I thought.

I made my way over to Inuyasha. I stopped walking towards him when he looked at me.  
He stared and fixed his black eyebrows over his glaring eyes.

"What're you doing?" He shouted. "Let's go already!"

'**_WHY?_**'

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**_Insane-san: _**_The next chapter is the break through chapter. It'll probably be twice as long as this. Then everything gets started. That's where like...I'm so gonna get like...All this crazy garbage out of my head and into this fic._

_**I know you hate reading this and MOST of you ignore it, but REVIEW THIS CHAPTER.** I stare at all of those fanfictions that have like, five chapters and they have over two-hundred reviews. And look at me! Where am I? I haven't even hit a hundred yet. What the heck? Come on, people. What's wrong with you?_

_These are my stats for this fic, okay? **VIEW:**_

_**Peacock Feathers - chaps: 14 - reviews: 79 - hits: (this is **awe**some.) 1056 - favs: 20 - alerts: 15**_

_The hits is how many people have read however many chapters in whatever order PERIOD, okay? Take each of those people and have them review. That's a LOT of reviews. Over 1k. You can see for yourself. You're not dumb, right? Of course not. _

_20 people have me on their faves list, I THANK YOU. 15 people have me on their update alert list, I THANK YOU as well._

_If you guys don't have a good Christmas, you can tell me about it. I think I'll have a good one...We can take shots of spiked egg nog or something together. So review or you don't get any spiked egg nog. -grin-  
_

**M**e**r**r**y** C**h**r**i**s**t**m**a**s_

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	16. XVI

_**Insane-san says: **Wow. _Miko Tennyo_, thank you so much. I think your review actually brought tears to my eyes. I hope your Christmas was magnificent and I hope your New Year is even more so. In answer to your question about the title, it came very randomly to me, though it does mean something about the story. I think the overall reason I picked out the title is because of this: Before I wrote this story, I was reading many Greek myths for fun. They are very interesting (though sometimes stupid). There is an old Greek myth about how the peacock came to be. Hera, queen of Olympus, finds out that Zeus, her husband, has killed her faithful servant, Argus. Argus was a beast-man with many eyes covering his entire body. I'll quote the myth for you: _To make sure that her faithful servant Argus would never be forgotten, she took his hundred bright eyes and put them on the tail of the peacock, her favorite bird. The eyes could no longer see, but they looked gorgeous, and that went to the peacock's little head, and made it the vainest of all animals.

_Before this happened, the peacock was just an ordinary bird. I sort of took the story of the peacock and put Kagome in its place. Kagome was just a normal girl until she found out she was above all other beings because of her sacred powers. She is being herself so that it doesn't all go to her head so she won't become vain._

_Reading that over, it sounds kind of stupid, but it holds a lot of depth for me. It's sore of poetic, haha...Thanks for reading, _Miko Tennyo_. I look forward to more reviews from you. Thank you so much. I hope you are satisfied with my explanation of the title. Have a wonderful new year! You can have as much spiked egg nog as you want!  
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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XVI**

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"Remind me where we're going again, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha, once again, ignored me. I had asked that same question a few times, and each time he answered, I couldn't understand what he was saying. It was a town with many shops, I knew that much, but the name of it escaped me. Maybe it was in another language? Heck, I had no idea. So after the fourth time asking, he just ignored me. I tried asking nicely for him to say it slowly, but he'd laugh at me. It was embarrassing...

A small ghost girl had been following us ever since we passed a small graveyard on the side of the path we were walking on. She had bright eyes and a sad, curious face. I tried talking to her a few times, but her face would look like Inuyasha's and she'd ignore me. So that's how I walked. Being ignored. It was like I was walking alone.

Depressing...

Inuyasha stopped to stretch and crack the joints in his arms. There were apple trees to our left and I ran to pick one. I jumped and grabbed a red, shiny one. It was bigger than both my hands. I grinned and grabbed another one. They were tough to get down, but I managed. By myself. I took a bite of one and could barely get a grip on it with my teeth, it was so big. It was sweet and juicy.

"Hey, Inuyasha," I called out. "If you ask me...One more time...!" He started angrily. I ran up next to him going, "No, no, no," I reached his side and held out my other apple. Well, it wasn't mine from the start. I realized when I had picked the second one that I had picked it for him. "I got an apple for you." I said cheerfully. I couldn't see his face well because it wasn't turned all the way towards me so I don't know what his reaction was. "...You picked it for..." I smiled. "For you." I finished.

He stood there, looking at the apple in silence. Then he reached up placed his clawed fingers on it. I looked at his hand as he took the apple from me. I waited with a smile for him to say something. I watched his fingers sort of grip the apple tighter and he made a noise like he wanted to say something. But then he turned around and started walking again, quicker than before.

I didn't really take notice as to why he was acting that way, so I just groaned loudly and said, "Why are we walking faster? We were already walking fast before and I don't--"

"Oh...Sorry." He stammered.

I stopped walking and fell into the ghost girl. The icey chill covered me from the waist down and I gasped loudly. I jumped forward and spun around to face the girl. "Listen, you should be careful. I know it was me who stopped walking and whatever, but you shouldn't be walking so close." I said, wagging a finger. She stared blankly at me and tilted her head to her shoulder. Her long pig-tailed hair wagged over her shoulder and she blinked. I sighed and turned back around.

I saw Inuyasha move in a way that looked like he had just turned back around. I took another large bite of my apple and remembered how I was the only one who could see ghosts. '_It must look weird every time I go off talking to one of them..._' I thought. "Is the apple good?" I asked as I took another bite of my own. I heard his crunching and felt the need to make some conversation.

"Ah...Yeah." He said in a calm voice. I felt my eyes narrow in concentration at his back and I wondered why he was suddenly acting so funny. "Y'know, where I come from apples don't get this big." I said with a grin, taking another bite of the apple. Inuyasha made a noise of acknowledgement. I sighed happily and took another bite. The sweet juice flowed into my mouth and I decided I should have picked more of the apples for later when I would be hungry again.

"Will there be more fruit where we're going, Inuyasha?" I asked loudly. I heard him take another rough bite. "Yeah. Different kinds." He said. I smiled happily and said, "That's good. So all of the fruit here is different...Right?" I swallowed a mouthful of apple. "Yeah, there's loads. Most of them are nasty. If they're bigger than your hand, then they're good." I held out my hand with a stupid smile and thought about it. "That's so cool." I said. My eyes widened as a sudden wave of surprise came over me. "Woah, what about vegetables? And animals?" I asked with my mouth open.

Inuyasha glanced over his shoulder; his golden eyes barely visible through the wall of his silver hair. He gave me a strange look and then looked away. "Hey, what's with that look?" I said, pushing my eyebrows together in question. "Nothin', I've just never...Had someone rely on me for so much information before." He said, taking a noisy bite of his apple.

My eyes widened with a blink and I turned my apple over. "Didn't you have people relying on you at the city?" I asked. He shook his head. "It's not like I know a lot, it's just that I know stuff that you don't." I stared at the ground as I walked with a thoughtful expression. "That's true..." I sighed.

'_Good job Kagome, now you're admitting that you're ignorant._' I hit myself over the head mentally and stared at my half-eaten apple. "What happened, Inuyasha...To that city we were at?" I asked. I was walking on eggs. I had to be careful not to crack any open. It took a few moments, but Inuyasha eventually answered me.

"There's a demon guy goin' around right now. A horrible demon who doesn't feel sorry for anything or anyone. He's said to show up every four-thousand years. He's a monster. He's more powerful than anyone and more evil than you know." I stopped in mid-bite to listen to him. I was getting nervous. "He kills for fun and wants to rule everything. It's also said that every four-thousand years...A Chosen One shows up, too."

I smiled dumbly and finished my bite. "That's me." I said. He nodded.

"Yeah..." Inuyasha said distantly. "When that Chosen comes, _if_ it comes," He said. "Its job is to destroy...The evil demon." The little ghost girl ran in a circle around me and then stopped once she was behind me again. "But first it has to be trained to be strong enough to destroy the evil." I said in a far-away voice.

"Nn...Yeah. And if you're not strong enough, you'll be killed. And the world will be taken over and all will be thrown into darkness and chaos." He finished and tossed his apple core into the grass. "That's what the books say."

I stared in a sick way at the rest of my un-eaten apple and threw it into the grass. "I thought something like that." I muttered. I tried to force myself out of the shock and fear, but I was falling. I was falling far down into some kind of hole in my mind.

"Anyway," Inuyasha said. "He slipped passed everyone's deffenses and somehow managed to get into your room. I came in and attacked him, but he escaped. Next thing I know, everything's on fire." I heard him growl, but he cut it off.

"So the Chosen has a guardian to protect it untl it's strong enough to protect itself?" I asked, staring blankly at the dirt path. "Even after that." Inuyasha said. Kagome felt a smile tug at her lips when she saw the back of Inuyasha's head. "I just realized that I'm not going to be alone through everything. You're the same as me, aren't you, Inuyasha?"

He didn't answer me. "You're in the same boat. You're stuck with your job like I'm stuck with mine." I suddenly felt myself feeling better after thinking of those horrible thoughts. "If you die, you fail. If I die, we both fail." I actually started laughing. I think maybe it was to cover up the fear of death. Not to say I was seriously thinking I was going to die, but it was sickly comforting thinking about all of that.

Then I heard Inuyasha start laughing, too. The same laugh as mine. Strange and almost forced. "I hadn't thought that through." He said.

Our laughter died down and stopped. I started wishing we had kept on laughing because now everything was silent. Silence left spaces for thoughts and I didn't want to think right then. "Let's do our best, Inuyasha." I said.

"Okay." He replied.

Ever since that time, I saw Inuyasha differently. I felt different towards him, too. It was like he was almost...It was like I considered him my best friend suddenly.

Soon, the sun was in the middle of the sky. The ghost girl was humming a haunting tune that brought my spirits down. I wanted her to leave, but what could I do? Inuyasha told me that we'd be at the town in a few minutes, but I was impatient. I was losing my temper and starting to feel whiny. The sun was hot and I found myself repeating the girl's depressing song in my head and making up words for it.

"Inuyasha," I whined. "Make her stop. I don't think she understands this language." I groaned pathetically. Inuyasha pushed his hair behind his shoulder and turned his head towards me. "Start cursing at her or somethin'." He said with a sigh. He was uncomfortable like me, I knew. It was a bad day and we both wanted to go somewhere cool.

"Go away you...Darned little _brat_!" I said forcefully. I felt a smirk jump onto my face. '_That felt kind of good!_' I said to myself, shocked. I looked over at Inuyasha, almost waiting for praise, but he looked strangely disgusted. "That was it?" He asked. My triumphant smirk faded to a frown and I said, "It was."

Inuyasha turned all the way around and stared. "Point to where she is." He said. I glanced over my shoulder and pointed to the emotionless-faced girl. Inuyasha walked up to where I was pointing.

The next thing that happened was very...Not kid-friendly, you could say. Some of the curses he said I never knew existed until he said them. And they were burned there in my mind to be repeated through my head.

Inuyasha finished his cursing with a kick of dirt at her. The girl's face was terrified and she faded.

I felt suddenly...So sorry for her. My eyes welled up. "Oooh..."

"Gaaah...What?" Inuyasha asked with annoyance. "I feel sad now." I said. "She's gone, isn't she? That's what you wanted." Inuyasha said, shaking his head as we walked. "Yeah, but she was..." I sighed and pushed hair out of my face.

"Ah, we're here." Inuyasha said loudly. I ran up next to him with a happy laugh. There was a little wooden sign that said...Oh gosh, I have no idea what it said to this day. It was in some strange language or something. Whatever the case, I couldn't pronounce it. The path went from dirt to gravel and we entered the town. Everything was very plain-looknig. Cottages made of pale wood, children running and laughing, people selling chickens and produce on the side of the roads.

"We're goin' this way." He informed me. I walked next to him and looked around at the busy people. Soon we were in front of a shop made of large logs. A sign stuck out above the door that looked like a sword. Inuyasha pulled the door open and we went inside. It smelled like coal and burning metal. Smoke floated around the shop and an old man stood behind a counter, pollishing a spear. What little hair he had was pulled back in a greasy little pony-tail. He had a thin sort of grey goatee and he was very skinny. He had baggy green clothes on and large, vacant eyes.

"Welcome to the weapon shop. If you have any questio--My goodness! If it isn't Inuyasha." He said in a hoarse voice.

"Yeah, yeah. It's me." Inuyasha said, walking up to the counter. It was so amazing to me at how it seemed like everyone knew Inuyasha. "Well, I take it you've heard about the little incident up north. I lost my weapons and need some more." Inuyasha said stiffly. "Is that how you greet the person who's made every weapon you've touched?" The old man asked, his bulging eyes focused on me.

"Who are you, my father? I'll greet you however I want." Inuyasha said, baring his fangs. "I don't have time for this. I need some weapons!" The old man scratched the top of his balding head with a bony, clawed finger. "I think I'm losing my hearing in this ear, could you repeat that?" Inuyasha lost his patience and he straightened himself up with a growl. "Don't be a fool! We don't have years, Toutousai, now get me some swords."

I raised my eyebrows and knew that Inuyasha was being a little rude, but he was technically in the right. I walked closer to the counter and examined the spear Toutousai had been pollishing. It shimmered with the oils and was extremely long and pointy. '_Shish kabob..._' I thought in a murmur.

Toutousai patted a hand against his little pointed ear and opened his bony jaw in a senile way. Inuyasha slammed a fist on the countertop and lowered his head.with clenched fangs. "Toutousai," He drawled through his teeth. "Hello." He pushed himself up straight and glared. Toutousai kept his mouth open. "Well, hello. How may I help you?" He blinked and then said, "My God, Inuyasha, it's you." He said. "What brings you here?" Inuyasha took a deep breath to calm himself and I bit back a disbelieving laugh.

"I _need_...some _weapon_s." Inuyasha hissed. Toutousai nodded lightly and went to a door behind the counter. He opened it and black smoke poured out. I heard the roaring and crackling of flames. He went inside the room and closed the door. I coughed in my fist and felt my eyes water. I pressed my hands against my cheeks to cool them.

The door opened again and Toutousai walked out. However, he didn't have any weapons from what I could see. Toutousai walked up to the counter and opened his hand in front of Inuyasha. Inuyasha flicked his ears back and he bent his head closer to Toutousai's opened hand. I looked closer, too. In his hand were two pieces of metal. They actually looked like... "Hair pins?" Inuyasha seethed. "Yes. Hair pins. I never really thought about it before but I guess long hair gets annoying. It's not a surprise that you asked for these hair pins now that I think about it..."

Inuyasha threw his head back and let out a frustrated yell. He jumped over the counter and opened the door. He disappeared in the smoke. I coughed lightly in my hand and glanced up at Toutousai. He was staring right at me with such a blank look. "H...Hello." I said carefully. He didn't answer and continued to stare. Silence followed and I wished for Inuyasha to come back quickly.

"So..." Toutousai said. My eye twitched on its own. "You must be..." I flicked my eyes over to a shelf full of bottles of pollish. '_Here it comes..._' I whined in my head.

"Inuyasha's girlfriend." He said, pointing a finger at me. My face contorted and my lip winced. "Whu...What? No! I'm the-"

"So why him, huh? You like air-headed guys who do things without thinking? Guys who...Beat up their swords?" He rasped with a blink. My face was red and I thought, '_Air-headed...?_' I waved my hands in front of me. "No, nothing like that. You see, I'm-"

"In love with him, no doubt...Or maybe you're using him. Or maybe he's using _you_...I suppose I knew Inuyasha would turn out to be that kind of guy, knowing the life he's lived..." Toutousai rubbed his chin with his thin hand and stared up at the ceiling.

"That's not it!" I shouted in embarrassed desperation. "He's my guardian!" I cried, rubbing the side of my face with the back of my hand. Toutousai nodded. "That is so bittersweet," He said. "But find out if he's using you, girl. You'll get hurt!" He said. I slapped my hands over my burning face and shook my head.

Inuyasha came through the door with two swords and a white bow. "Kagome, sword or bow?" He asked. "Hey, what happened to you?" He asked, staring at me. I crossed my arms over my chest and suddenly found the dusty floor interesting. "Nothing, really." I said quietly. "I don't know how to use either." I said, stealing a quick glance at the weapons he held. Inuyasha shook his head. "Whatever. Then I'll take both of them. You'll learn how to use them anyway." He said, putting a sword in a sheath at his side.

"Well, we'll be going, Toutousai." Inuyasha said, his voice hinting that his mind was elsewhere. "See you around. C'mon, Kagome." Inuyasha said, walking out the front door. I ran after him, catching a last embarrassed glance at Toutousai.

"Bye-bye, Chosen One!" Toutousai called as the door closed.

"That stupid...!" I started, clenching my fists as I walked behind Inuyasha. "What?" Inuyasha asked, glancing down at me. I turned my red face away from him and glared through the dirty glass window of the weapon shop. "That Toutousai is a strange person." I said quietly. Inuyasha just went, "Keh," and we walked through the busy town until we reached the other side.

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_**Insane-san says: **Another chapter done. I should really make them longer...They seem so puny sometimes. I mean, if I can write chapters that are over 6,000 words long, then surely I can stretch these out a little more. What do you think? Review please, you happy people. I hope I shed some light on you. (I didn't get any dandruff along with that shedding I hope.)

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	17. XVII

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_**Insane-san says: **About that huge gap? Basically, life caught up with me...Hahaha...Yes..._

_I became completely addicted to **Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion**. It's the best game I have EVER played and I can't get away from it. And when I'm not on Oblivion, I'm trying to keep in touch with my online friends, and things go crazy and we end up laughing and talking for hours..._

_SO, to get myself out of this freak circle of non-fanfiction, I've decided that ever Thursday is fanfiction day. I will do nothing on the computer but type fanfiction on Thursday. Doesn't that sound fun? So no more scary gaps inbetween chapters. -wink-_

_MikoTennyo, that review brought TEARS to my eyes. I THANK you for that review. If you were my only reviewer, I would be happy with just that. Thank you so much for being here with me through this story. I dedicate this chapter to you as a late birthday present._

_So every Thursday, I alternate the fanfiction update. This week is Peacock Feathers, next week it will be Shousetsu no Kowai, then Nefarious, then Peacock Feathers again. Get it? That shouldn't be so bad. Tell me what you think in a review._

_I doubt you want to hear me babble for so long, so here's the new chapter. Enjoy, my thousands of readers. _

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XVII

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It had been three hours.

Three whole hours since we'd spoken a word to each other. Well, at least since I'd said anything to him...

When I say "him" you pretty much know that I'm talking about Inuyasha, right?

I thought so.

We get out of that village and then what happens? Silence. I had no idea what was going on. I'd been in the dark for such a long time I forgot how the light looked. How it felt to like...Sort of...Be in on someone's idea. Someone's fantasy or thoughts or plans. Inuyasha was like a present. You want to open it and get to the inside to see what's there really bad, but you don't want to open it too fast or try to force the lace off because you might...Rip it...

I stood there, biding my time. I watched his back and examined how his arms moved when he walked. I stared at his hair, his ears, his claws, his clothes. I wondered if he was bleeding anywhere I couldn't see. I felt like he was injured somehow. It wasn't like I had any band-aids or anything on me, and it wasn't like they'd actually help someone like him. So I just walked in silence.

And what did I care anyway, right? He wasn't exactly friend material.

At least I thought so at the time. How could he be a friend to anyone? Sure, he had favored and was favored by what, four or five people total in the city he lived in? Well, five was enough, but I didn't see that then.

The bow that I received knocked against my shoulder lightly with each step I took. It was pretty. My sack of arrows made these quiet little rustling noises from hitting against themselves. Every time I thought about using weapons for the sake of my life, I got all jittery. I tried to focus on things like the landscape, the sky, clouds, and Inuyasha.

He was my only company. I always used to watch those shows where something happened like, a psychopath murderer killed people just because he was so lonely. People go mad when they are alone for too long. I was a social person. Inuyasha wasn't.

So I either talked to the wall, or didn't say anything. I chose the latter.

Any minute, I was telling myself. Any minute I'll say something to him.

There was nothing to say. There was something that was always strange about him every time my eyes wandered over his form. There was this kind power that came off of him saying, "Back off!" So what's a girl to do? Say, "Hey, what's up?" And giggle?

Not with that guy. I wanted to talk to him. I was lonely. I was really lonely. And scared. I was kind of caving in at that time.

I wanted him to sense it. Maybe turn around and say, "Need anything, Kagome?" No...That wouldn't happen. I didn't think he gave a care about me at all. Besides the fact that I was his "duty" and all of that...He felt the need to protect me as an object, not a person.

Another hour passed and the sun was low in the sky. It was so boring. So plain. It was empty. I started having a panic attack. It was the weirdest thing really, and kind of laughable...So if you're laughing, I can understand. But...I got really sick. I could catch my breath. I felt heavy. I was telling myself not to throw up. '_Please don't throw up, please don't throw up, please,_'

The sun was colder there. It wasn't so blinding to look at. The thought of a different sun just upset me even more. But what was I so upset about? I felt so sick and cold and wrong. Sad and lonely and scared. Wasn't it that inconsiderate jerk's job to look after me?

'_I'm gonna die._' I groaned in my mind. '_I'm really going to die._'

Pathetic? Is that what you said? Don't rub it in, okay? Try putting yourself in my shoes and see how it feels. Geez...

It was only a few minutes later that I started to feel my legs slowing me down. The sun was nearly gone and the grass was orange and purple. I felt like the earth had turned sick colors for me to make me not feel so alone in my illness.

It only made things worse.

"Inuyasha," I rasped in a far-away voice. He gave no answer. He didn't know, I don't think. Maybe he was spaced out or couldn't hear it in my voice. "I'm gonna be sick." Tears came to my eyes in reply to my statement and cold sweat dotted my face. I saw his shadow on the grass shift and knew he was looking at me.

He didn't get a word out before I bolted to the left towards some trees and emptied my belly's contents.

Puking feels good and bad at the same time, doesn't it? That's one of those amusingly disgusting thoughts.

'_You're behind the trees, Kagome, it's okay. He's not staring at you being sick all over the place._' I assured myself.

When nothing else would come out, I backed away, panting and shaky. My stomache, jaw, hands, shoulders, and legs trembled. My mind was in a haze, but at the same time it was so clear. I heard this sloshing sound suddenly and held back a wretch.

Something hit my shoulder. I looked over and saw a canteen attached to Inuyasha's hand. I fumbled for it, trying to mutter a word of thanks, but when I opened my mouth it just clamped back shut.

I twisted the lid off and rinsed my mouth out; back turned on Inuyasha. I poured some in my hand and slapped it around my mouth to get whatever was there washed off. "So where'd this come from?" He asked in a low tone. I barely heard him over my buzzing head. I shook my head at a loss for words. "I just-" I clamped my jaw down again.

He sighed and said, "Well, can you make it up a little more so we can make camp?" I slapped myself mentally and forced out a smile. I nodded. I was the cool, brave Chosen after all. But not to Inuyasha. To him, I was weak. I knew he felt that way. That's why he was there to begin with. To protect me.

To guard me.

He glanced at me constantly over his shoulder as we walked. It made me feel extremely self-conscience. Maybe he was thinking of how bad I smelled or something. Or wondering if I was going to throw up again...

His body tensed up and then he suddenly seemed to have made up his mind and walked sharply to the left. There were these three huge oakish-looking trees there, kind of shaping a dome. Little parts of my mind started shutting down and I felt like I wanted to sleep right away. You know that feeling you get when you're sick and you feel like if you lay down with lots of covers on, you'll sort of just "sweat out" the sickness? Or depression or whatever?

That's how I felt.

So I sort of...Stumbled forward kind of quickly and awkwardly and almost fall to my knees on the grass. But before I fell, Inuyasha bolted forward and caught me.

I let out an ill groan and said, "Thanks..." In this weak voice. He nodded and helped me down on the ground. I thought in one horrid second that he was disgusted by me, but then I realized the guy was actually _flustered _or something. "You doin' okay?" He asked. I made an effort to shake my head. He frowned and watched our surroundings carefully.

It was night by the time we were settled down then. It wasn't one of those peaceful nights.

There was all this tension in the air. I'll never forget when I was finally falling asleep and Inuyasha sort of hissed out, "Who the hell are you?" And he stood up and lunged forward at me to protect me or whatever.

I screamed so loud and I punched him uhh..Like, where it hurts.

We didn't talk after that.

He tried to explain in this evil, angry way, that he saw someone in the trees. I was convinced he had been having a nightmare.

Later, I found out, when we were speaking again, that he had been. He was too embarrassed to admit it.

* * *

I slept horribly that night. I woke up a dozen times sweating so badly. Feeling so sick. My throat was swollen worse each time I woke up. And each time I woke up, Inuyasha would look up at me curiously and fidget his ears. And each time that would happen, I would give him this glare. Then I'd sigh. Then I'd lay back down with my back facing him. 

He didn't sleep after the nightmare thing earlier in the night. That sort of fed my bad night and gave me a cause for not being able to sleep well, I think. He was awake the whole night, and every time I woke, he was staring. It wasn't comfortable.

The night ended, just like every night has to.

I woke up in a shock to find myself completely drenched. I mean soaked. To the bone. It was raining extraordinarily hard. Like buckets of water were being poured down around me and on me every split second. I sat up in shock at this freezing, pouring rain and the first thing I noticed was that Inuyasha was gone.

I sat there, my eyes as wide and scared as a deer in front of a car. Drenched locks of black hair were plastered onto my face. I was pale with sickness. I was chattering with cold. And Inuyasha was gone.

I played with my fingers and swallowed the lump in my throat. "Oh, no..." I chattered out. "Oh, no..."

I stood up and kind of turned a little to the left and the right in a childish state of panic. I was that little kid you see lost at the mall without his mother.

The fire had been out for a while. He wasn't anywhere. I looked up to the trees, through the trees...But it wasn't any use. The rain was too thick to see any way. I walked backwards and sat with my back against the nearest tree. It offered a slight bit of coverage from the rain. I shot my arm out and grabbed one of my arrows. I stroked it and chattered.

The rain kept on pouring.

After at _least_ twenty minutes, I heard a crunch. I jumped and felt my heart almost explode in the surprise.

Inuyasha stood several feet away from me in the pouring rain. He was, if possible, wetter than I was.

He just stood there staring at me. I looked down at his feet and saw three dead rabbits. The crunch had been him tossing them on the ground. I looked back up at him after a shocked examination of those poor dead rabbits...

He suddenly grinned hugely. "I hope you like drenched rabbit, because the rain doesn't s eem to like fire."

He had to shout over the slamming of the rain. "You're not serious." I shouted back in despair. My voice trembled harshly. I was shaking violently from the cold that had added to my already sick body. Inuyasha stood perfectly still. He threw his head back and laughed.

I was scared then.

"Serious? I'm more than serious." He sprinted forward and picked up the rabbits. He grinned at me again. His eyes were bright in the dark grey sheet of rain. He was seriously amused by all if that, it looked like. Or maybe he was just being himself. Or maybe he...

Had snapped.

"At least the rain cleaned most of the crud off their fur." He said more quietly. I pictured myself eating a dead, raw rabbit, fur and all, and I shuddered in disgust.

I had the horror, the complete horror then, to witness by surprise the act of Inuyasha ripping off the first rabbit's head and tossing it away. I cried out and covered my eyes. But it was too late by then. I had already seen it. I could see it with my eyes closed.

"The hell's wrong with you?" He snorted. "Don't tell me you like to eat brains or somethin' odd like that..."

I had the pleasure of hearing the distinct little "pop" sound of the other two rabbits' heads being pulled off.

"Odd?" I screamed. I opened my eyes and dropped my hands into the puddle that was the ground. "Me, odd? Ugh!" That image of the rabbit's head being pulled off was etched in my brain forever. And I guess it might be useful to really..._Really_ know the sound a rabbit's head makes when its being literally ripped away from its body.

Or maybe it wasn't useful at all.

"C'mon, eat up! Maybe the hot, bloody organs will make you feel better." He grinned boyishly in my face and wiggled a rabbit around my head. It's dead limbs flopped around and a paw touched my face. I shrieked and slapped it away. He moved back a little with the rabbit and laughed. What was so funny? None of this was funny at all! I was sick! I was supposed to be in my warm, soft bed with a TV and my mother's soup!

'_This sucks._' I thought to myself. "Hey," I heard. I looked up from my depression and stared into his glowing eyes. Maybe he had night vision...Like a dog. His face looked different. My heart sped up a little and I felt myself get sucked into his gaze. His face got closer and closer to mine, slowly. My face flushed and I stared.

He pulled a dead rabbit up from no where, shook it around in my face and yelled, "Eat me!"

I screamed and jumped up from the ground. I slipped and fell back down. I landed in a huge mud puddle. It sloshed and splashed up all around me. I was almost completely brown...There was silence. Then he started laughing. He laughed and laughed. Then I felt myself doing something horrible.

I started laughing too.

It got funnier an funnier by the second. I didn't understand. It was funny. It was so bad, but it was funny.

I replayed the whole thing over in my mind, and each time I re-played it, I laughed harder. I had a feeling he was doing the same thing, because he kept laughing harder, too. Inuyasha, laughing...I would have never thought that I'd see that.

It was the first time I saw him really laugh. It made me happy to see that. I stood back up, giggling more quietly.

I walked back to my seat and sat down with a grin. "That was so mean." I said, smiling. He flashed a fanged grin and played with the dead, headless rabbit. It was very gothic. I wondered if Inuyasha would be goth if he lived in my world. In my time.

"You feelin' better?" He asked suddenly. My eyes widened a little and I looked at him. His head was bent down to the rabbit and he looked like he was trying to be completely absorbed in his fiddling with the lifeless thing.

I smiled. "Yes," I said. His eyes shot up, and it looked like he meant to look away, but he was suddenly stuck staring at my face.

"I do feel better. Thank you for asking, Inuyasha." His mouth opened a little and he stared. I continued to smile.

Then, completely out of the blue, he tossed the rabbit aside and stood up. He kind of stumbled backwards and turned around quickly. I stopped smiling and stared at his form through the smashing rain. He folded his hands behind his head and stood there with his back to me. I smiled again and wrapped my arms around my knees. '_Maybe I was a little too quick to judge this guy_.' I thought.

* * *

The rain finally stopped. Inuyasha and I both agreed that we were completely drenched and cold. We never ate those rabbits, but he carried them as we walked. He was looking for some hot springs. He told me they were absolutely everywhere, and they were easy to spot. You could see the steam rising over the trees, he said. 

After we were warm again, we would cook those rabbits and eat them. He probably didn't even intend to eat them raw in the rain, either. That was just his sense of humor. I was just so confused at the thought of Inuyasha making a joke that I thought he had been serious at that time. He was funny, though. Inuyasha was actually funny. I had no idea.

I felt a lot closer to him. I was much more open and talked a lot more. Before when I had thought he would ignore me completely, when I talked, he talked back. We talked for a long time while searching for the springs. Suddenly, I saw steam rising through some trees.

My mouth opened like a shocked little girl and I pointed and shouted, "Inuyasha, a hot spring!" He whipped around and stared. "Ahhh, you found one." He said. He nodded his head towards it and started running. I ran with him. He didn't run ahead of me even though he was more than capable of doing so. He kept my pace. Keep in mind I was always first place on the track team back in school, so I was pretty fast.

Little by little, this scary feeling was coming over me. I liked Inuyasha. For the first time, I admitted that I liked him. A lot.

Maybe he _was _friend material. Maybe he _was _nice. Sure he was arrogant, but he was also funny. And he did care about me.

Why hadn't I seen that before?

I turned my head toward him and grinned. The left side of his face winced and then he looked back at me. He narrowed an eye.

"What're _you _lookin' at?" He snapped. The grin vanished from my face and my mouth was left hanging open. "Uhh...Nothing." I drawled. His eyes widened in a shocked glare. "Oh, so I'm _nothin_', huh?" He shouted. I waved my hands as we ran and said, "Oh, I mean...No! No, you're not nothing! I was--"

"Just shut up, we're here already. You talk _way_ too loud." He complained while he slowed to a stop.

I was appalled!

Here I was, saying all these wonderful things about him in my head, and he treats me this way!

'_Well, I guess a demon can't become an angel overnight..._'

Water dripped from my hair and skin, and I stared longingly at the steamy pools of water...I laughed and clapped my hands. It looked so inviting! I thought I was going to cry from happiness! Now _there_ was a cure for my illness, coldness, and worries.

I immediately took off my soaked shirt and threw it on the ground. I was about to take off my bra but then...something dawned on me.

"W-W-WHAT THE HELL?" I heard a familiar voice screech. I turned to my right and met the burning red face of Inuyasha. My face was equally as red. We stared at eachother. Inuyasha threw his arms up over his face, horrified, and screamed at the same time I did.

He jumped up into a tree, and I ran for a hot spring and dove in to hide myself.

The warmth of the bubbling water consumed me and I smiled happily despite my utter embarrassment and humiliation.

The top half of my face came up out of the water, and my nose bubbled air over the surface. I turned around slowly with my arms over my chest. I couldn't see Inuyasha, but I could hear the distant mumblings of a chain of curses. "In-" I cleared my throat.

"Inuyasha," I called. "You can go in that one over there, and I'll be in this one. Just...Don't turn around, and I won't...Okay?"

I got no reply other than silence. It was so horrible! I was so embarrassed! I was just like, "Woo! Take off my clothes!"

What the HECK was I THINKING? Nothing. That's what.

"I won't look, I swear!" I called. I wanted to make amends. Things had been going so well, too...

"Just as long as you don't look at me," I shouted into the air. "KEH!" I heard. "Why would I be tempted to look at YOU?"

I sunk the lower half of my face in the water and let my eyelids droop. I raised an eyebrow.

"Fine, if you're not tempted," I shouted coolly. "Then you should be fine getting in that pool all the way over there!" I turned around and took off my other clothes. The steam and the bubbles hid me, and he was far away. I flattened my clothes on the rocks to dry in the warm sun. A rainbow slashed against the sky and I smiled at it.

Suddenly, I heard a splash in the background. I grinned and was happy that he finally decided to get in.

"Don't worry," I shouted. "My back's turned and I can't see. Plus, there's a huge rock covering your pool."

"Good," He shouted back defensively. "Better for you because you'd die from the nose-bleed!"

I felt my face twist together in amusement and I busted out laughing. I laughed and giggled. I hid my face in the water but it just bubbled like crazy. I choked on the water and laughed even harder.

My giggle-fit died down and I shook my head with a grin. He had a weird way of making me laugh over odd things.

"Y'know, I like you, Inuyasha." I said in a decisive tone and nodded my head. "SHUT THE HECK UP!" He screeched. I slapped my hand against the water and laughed. "Aw, did I embarrass you?" I shouted back with a laugh. "No, now SHUT UP." The last part of his sentence was drowned out by bubbles, but that was the give-away that he had hid part of his face in the water.

I started a giggle-fit again.

I wouldn't have been surprised if by the end of the day, I would have died laughing from everything...

But no, that wouldn't have been the thing I almost died from... Right after I dried off in the sun and got my clothes on,

Little white feathers...Started to fall all around me. Like snow. I looked up to the sky through the trees. The feathers fell and fell...It was so pretty. So capturing. I stared for a long time. Why didn't it seem weird to me? Why didn't I call out, "Hey Inuyasha, look at the feathers!" I was in a trance. I felt light and fluffy. I felt like a feather...Like one of those feathers that fell all around me.

They landed gently into my hair without noise. On my feet, in the hot spring, on the fallen leaves that littered the ground...

I smiled in an empty trance. Something kept pulling at my stomach, like I wanted to gag. Or cough. Something was stuck in my throat.

It confused me, and I wanted it to go away. But then I felt that it wasn't me that wanted it to go away...It was something...

Someone else.

My head pulsed and I felt nauseous. It was so sickening and dizzy. Finally, I allowed that strange sensation to be released from me. I released that stuck gag...Or cough. Or whatever I thought it was.

It was a scream.

That scream pierced the sky and woke the heavens. It must have. It ripped through the trees and was so loud, I could hear nothing but that scream. Suddenly I was knocked off my feet by an enormous gust of wind. I landed on my knees and then I was picked back up again by that same wind. My eyes were blurred with scared, sick tears, and the wind kept drying them out. My clothes flapped around me fast and loud in the wind. I crossed my arms over my head and tried to remain standing.

Then there was...It was like there was too much air. Too much oxygen. I wanted to breathe it all in, but there was way too much...It was suffocating me. The thing that keeps every animal alive was killing me.

Even though there was so much air, there was none inside of me. My lungs wouldn't take in the air.

I felt so light. I fell backwards and landed on something soft. Like a huge feather.

I heard screaming over the deafening wind, but it wasn't mine. I wondered who was screaming so loudly, so desperately...

Then I passed out.

* * *

_**Insane-san says:** Well kiddies, that's it... I know, I know, I'm the cliffie queen. Heeheh. So, you can flame me for my absence in a review, or congratulate me for coming back. Thanks to everyone who's reading this now. And thanks to those who will review._

_I'll see you guys in this fanfiction again in a couple weeks. -grin-_

_OH, something I've always wanted to ask was, Can everyone see the divider lines? I write this on FireFox, and provides everyone with divider lines and stuff...I can see them fine, but I was wondering if they aren't there for some people._

_So at the end of your review, could you guys tell me if you see it okay? n.n Thanks._

_Oh, I thought of something cool. If you guys out there ever wanna drop me a line and talk, my AIM name is PirateWolf01._

_(lame, I know...) _

_Byeee! _

* * *


	18. XVIII

_**

* * *

Insane-san says: **Here is yet another Peacock Feather's chapter. I decided to put Nefarious on hold for a while. It isn't exactly my favorite story because I feel that this one is my baby... -gigglesnort-_

_My cousin, who lives in Ohio, saw the title to this fanfiction and was so impressed with it, he stared at the computer screen for a while with his mouth open. That was only the title to the story, mind you. Hahah. It was funny. PROUDNESS!_

_-cough-_

_Well, I spent all of yesterday blissfully thinking it was Wednesday. But then I realized that it couldn't have been Wednesday, because that was my parents anniversary...And that was over._

_So then I was like, "OH MY GOD! IT'S THURSDAY! I HAVEN'T FINISHED THE CHAPTER!" So I ran out of the pool, shoveled down my dinner, and now I'm here finishing this chapter..._

_My sister read the last chapter of this fanfiction and underlined many errors. It was so disgusting to me because I proof-read it three times, and even ran it through a spell-checker. o.O_

_-...kicks her computer-

* * *

_

_Kagome..._

I tried to open my eyes.

"Who's calling me?" I groaned.

_...Kagome..._

The voice whispered sadly.

A chill ran through my body.

My eyes jerked open.

It was dark. '_A dream?_' I wondered. I tried to get up. To my nightmarish horror, I realized I was chained to a bed. No girl should ever have the thoughts that I had when I put two-and-two together...I was scared. Really scared. I didn't know what to think.

The scent that wafted around that place was suffocating. It was intoxicating. It reeked of something strange. It was the scent of ill; of sickness. It was the smell of everything gone wrong. I closed my mouth to keep in a wretch. I closed my eyes tightly and ground my teeth. I tried hard to think about what I was doing there and where I had come from.

I remembered at once with a gasp. I must have been abducted! '_The horror of it all... What a nightmare!_'

I tried to move myself time and again. Struggling against the chains and hurting myself. By the feel of it, I was wearing a dress. It was soft and velvet. I could feel it against myself. It was all I could do to keep my mind away from how that dress came to be on me. My head was pulsing and my breath was shuddering. I jerked myself up constantly. The chains were ripping through the sleeves of my dress and cutting my arms. I could feel the hot blood trailing down my elbows.

After what felt like hours of trying to free myself, exhaustion consumed me. I lay breathless on top of that soft bed. I hated it. I hated it with every ounce of my being. It was very cruel of it to cushion me in my state of anger. My heart squeezed tightly when a sudden thought came to mind. '_Inuyasha!_' My eyes stared helplessly into the darkness. Maybe whoever took me took him, too. It didn't feel right to hope for that so much. I had a lot of doubt that he was there with me.

"Inuyasha," I breathed out hoarsely. I got no answer. I turned my head back forward and closed my eyes sadly. My breathing slowed back down and I tried to shut off my mind. It didn't work.

Then I heard a little voice whisper through the darkness. The hairs stood on my neck and my eyes opened wide. I listened.

"...doing?" That was all I could hear. It was a rising and falling whisper. Some was quiet, some was loud. It moved through my ears and echoed strangely through the room. "What did you say?" I choked out. I swallowed and listened.

"What are you doing?" The little voice rose and fell and swirled around. It was a ghost. I tried to think of an answer to give the dead child. My eyes swiveled over the blackness. "Someone stole me." I said stiffly. It sounded good enough. I heard a little shy gasp.

"Stealing isn't nice," He said. "Not nice." Ghosts have strange voices. The only way I can describe it to you is like...Their voices glow. They echo sometimes, and their tone changes quickly. They have glowing voices.

I felt myself smiling. "You're right." I said. "I want to go back home, but someone chained me here. I can't move." I felt a small, cold hand touch my arms. "Don't be scared." He said sympathetically. "Maybe the people who live here will help you." I frowned. "I think the people who live here are the ones that took me." I said in a convincing voice. I heard a small noise of realization.

"I get it now." I heard him clap his hands together. "You were with the feather-lady!" My pupils shrunk. I remembered the feathers and the trance I was in. '_This boy knows that woman...?_' I wondered. "You've seen me before, little one?" I asked in a motherly tone. I could hear the smile in his voice. "Yes," I felt him fingering at my chains. "The feather-lady brought you here. She showed you to the dark man." My heart skipped a beat. What he was telling me didn't make me happy at all.

"The dark man?" I asked quietly. "Yes, the dark man." He said. "I think he likes you a lot because he stared at you for a long time." My mouth opened and I looked away from the direction of the boy's voice. I paused a moment to collect myself. "What happened then?" I forced myself to ask. "Then," He continued. "He told the feather-lady to wash you up and put you to bed because it was late." I let myself breath again and I closed my eyes. "I see." The little boy made an agreeing kind of sound. "Thank you for telling me." I said with a forced smile. It was impossible to be happy where I was, but I tried to make myself seem nice.

"You're welcome!" He said cutely. "My name is Ichiro. Your name is Chosen, right?" He asked happily. The smile faded from my face. That title was the cause for everything. Chosen. That was my name. That was what I was. I was chosen to be Chosen.

"No," I said, shaking my head. "My name is Kagome." The boy clapped his hands a few times and said, "Oooh! Okay! Well, I hope you get out in the end...I'm too little to help you." He said sadly. I frowned. "It's alright. I'm sure I'll be okay...I'm sure." The little boy chuckled a little and I could hear him shuffling his feet. Then he gasped and said, "I just thought of something!" My heart bounced at the sudden loudness. "What did you think of?" I asked. "Okay, I thought of an idea." He said with a stomp of his foot. "You can just ask the dark man to let you go! Maybe if you say 'please,' he'll release you! Mama always said that you won't know the answer to something unless you ask."

I smiled hopelessly.

"Yeah, I'll just ask him to let me go, right?" He didn't sense the sarcasm in my voice. Being so young, I doubt he even knew what sarcasm was. "Yeah, yeah," He shouted. "You can just ask him! It's like my mama used to say," I nodded. "Yes, I heard what your mama used to say..." I sighed. "Maybe for the heck of it, I will." The boy laughed deviously and clapped his hands. I'm sure he felt like a genius.

"Go ahead, ask him!" He said excitedly. I raised my eyebrows. "And how am I going to do that, exactly?" I asked.

"He's sitting right over there in that chair!" The little boy shouted. I knew he must have been pointing.

If I had been older...And maybe over-weight...I would have died from a heart attack. I knew I would have.

The shock...That went through me...It was terrifying. The _dark man_...He had been there the whole time, from start to finish. Even before the time I woke up. It was awful. I wanted to wake up from the nightmare. I couldn't convince myself that it was all real. It was too terrible to be real. My eyes filled with tears and I stared in the direction of the ceiling. It was impossible. He couldn't be there.

"Are you sure?" I whispered. I whispered it. Because I knew he was there.

"Mhm," I heard. "He's there. He's been watching us. He's real quiet, though." I swallowed dryly. My blood was pounding through my veins hotly. A familiar sensation swirled through my stomach and my body pulsed painfully. I tried to swallow back what I knew wanted to come up.

Those _powers_ of mine.

'_Calm down, calm down,_' I hissed to myself. Then I told myself something I never thought I would think. '_What would Inuyasha do in a situation like this?_' The truth was I had no idea what he would do. Sometimes he seemed cool, and other times he wanted to jump into something head-on. If this dark man was who I was beginning to think he was...Then I was in bad trouble.

"Well, you've done all you can do. I'll take your advice. Thanks." I tried as hard as I could to keep a tremble out of my voice. The little boy yawned and said, "You're right, I should go to bed. I'm sleepy. I'm always sleepy." His voice faded and his presence disappeared from the room. And he was gone.

It was just me and the dark man.

The man couldn't possibly have known what we were talking about. The only things he could here were my replies to the boy. And I hadn't given anything away. So then I started developing a plan. If I allowed my powers to come out, there would be a huge explosion and I'd be free of the chains and the dark man would probably blow up. For all I knew, the whole room could have exploded, but I would be safe.

I was completely still on that bed. My jaw trembled with my deep breathes. Sweat dripped slowly across my head. I waited.

I waited for the right moment. I waited and waited...

'_Now!_' I gave in to the painful pulses of my powers and pressed myself deeper into the mattress. Light surrounded me. But it was so bright, I was blinded. I couldn't see anything. My eyes spilled tears from the sudden brightness, but I still tried to catch a glimpse of the room.

'_Something's not right. Where's the sound of explosions?_' I was seriously ticked off at that point, not to mention nervous.

Then I heard this kind of hissing sound...My whole body was starting to feel nicely cool. The sweat dried from my body and I didn't feel very scared anymore. My eyes closed peacefully and I became very relaxed. The pain in my arms and legs and everywhere else on my body vanished. '_Am I healing myself?_' I thought. The pain was gone and I was cool and relaxed. That was really good.

But it really sucked, too.

I blinked several times, trying to see. Then...Something cold touched my face quickly, as if to test my skin. Then the coldness returned.

Someone was touching my face. With cold, long fingers.  
My mouth opened and I stared blindly. The light disappeared. It was black once again.

"Fascinating..." I heard a low, cold voice; taunting and cool. My teeth clenched and my face twisted in its anger. "Get off of me." I hissed. He let his fingers stay an annoying few moments longer before he withdrew them. "There's no need to be cruel." He said quietly in that dark voice. "We can get along." I chewed back my seething and turned my eyes away from his voice.

"Not if you chain me down." I said snobbishly. He snickered darkly through his closed mouth. "That is for your safety...and mine."

He was suffocating me with this kind of evil around him. His very presence had filled the room with that stench that clogged my lungs and made me ill. I was suddenly taken over by a kind of taunting arrogance. I dared to smirk. "That's because you're scared of me. I can heal myself and blow stuff up." I tried to chuckle cockily like Inuyasha would. "I am the Chosen after all...Stronger than anything in the world. And I'm said to be the only one that can kill you, isn't that righ--"

Something dry and rough curled around my neck tightly and silenced me immediately. It was the same kind of tentacle-root as before when I was being held up in the air...Well, at least it wasn't slimy. But it was still pretty gross.

"Which is why, I am going to kill you right now." He hissed. My eyes widened and the tentacle pressed harder on my jugular. I stopped breathing completely. I felt the blood in my head pulsing and I tried to close my eyes. I coughed without sound. But then, the root loosened. "But..." He said barely above a whisper. "It can't be yet..." The tentacle slipped off of me. I gasped hugely over and over.

"The morning shall be very interesting...Dear Chosen." I could hear him smirking at the title. "Goodnight."

After he said that, the air was thick with what I can only describe as poison. It was sickly sweet and my lungs sucked it in without warning.

I passed out.

* * *

When I opened my eyes again, the room was lit. I gasped and tried to sit up. Unfortunately, the chains reminded me that I was a prisoner. I sighed in depression and looked around the room for the first time. It was a medium-sized room. Like any normal house-hold bedroom. The walls and floor were stone. There was a window behind me letting in a lot of sunlight, and there was a chair about eight feet away from me to my right. It sat in the corner of the room by a large steel door.

I looked down at my dress but could barely see it through all of the thick chains. I could see and feel dried blood on my arms and hands.

I frowned and slammed my head against the pillow.

'_Stupid Inuyasha._' I'm not really like, one-hundred percent sure why, but I was really mad at Inuyasha. I wanted him to come crashing through the door, screaming curse words and holding Dark Man's head, or something like that...

I sighed and blamed him for my situation. I wondered what he was going through. Was he close by? Was he far away?

I could only guess with a sad look in my eyes.

* * *

_Kagome..._

My closed eyes winced.

_...Kagome._

A frown curled over my face.

_Kagome!_

I ground my teeth and turned my head away.

_KAGOME!_

My eyes snapped open and I sat up with a gasp.

My eyes met with the dark brown eyes of a woman not much older than me. She had long brown hair tied up in a pink hair band. She wore armor that looked like it was made out of pink marble. I found myself thinking that it looked very nice on her. I was lying in front of her lap on top of something furry. She stared down at me with a serious face mixed with worry. "Thank goodness you're awake. I need to speak with you quickly."

I blinked and stared.

"You need to give me the directions to the place you last camped. Please look around and tell me to the best of your memory!" My heart started pounding and my head spun. I tried to sit up but failed. I waited a moment and was then able to sit up. My eyes snapped open wide and I saw that I was riding on a large cream-colored cat with two tails. Fire came from her great paws and she ran on the air. Her eyes were like huge beautiful rubies. Long white sabers protruded from her mouth and she seemed very much focused.

I was flying through the air on an over-sized monster cat.

"Kagome," The woman shouted. I flicked my eyes towards her in a slow stunned kind of way. "You must hurry and tell me! We aren't exactly safe!" Sweat rolled off her face as she shot her head around to view the surroundings for danger. Then I heard a roar. Loud and rumbling, echoing through the trees and mountains that spread out around and beneath us.

Then something flew up beside us. It was huge and yellow...It was big at the front and gradually grew thinner towards its end. It had eyes...And a mouth. Someone was riding on top of it. "Sango," The man yelled. "Miroku," She shouted back. They nodded at each other as if to verify that they were both okay.

"I don't mean to sound like a wimp," The huge yellow thing said. "But we really need to get out of here..." The man, Miroku, slammed his staff against the yellow things head and said, "Silence, Hachi! This is no time for cowardice. Lady Sango and her noble cat are going as fast as they can. And if you want to get out of here so quickly, why don't _you_ speed up?"

A smile tugged at my lips and I sniffed in the fresh air. I looked down below us and saw us pass over the village that Inuyasha and I got our weapons at. Sango, as she was apparently called, eyed me almost suspiciously. I guess when you save someone everyone knows as the Chosen One, you kind of don't know what kind of person she's going to be like. And when you see her smiling in the face of danger even though she's not smiling at the danger,

It's kind of disturbing.

"Follow the path beneath us. I'll tell you when to veer left." I shouted over the wind. She nodded and her cat kicked her legs harder than ever through the air. We followed the path in a paranoid silence until I saw where Inuyasha had suddenly turned left and found where he wanted to camp. I pointed. "Through there. That's the last place I slept at. But we left there in the morning and went further along the path." I shouted.

"In that case, we should continue along the path, Sango." The large yellow creature, Hachi, turned back to the right and flew swiftly over the path. Sango's cat ran through the air and kept her pace above him. Then I saw steam rising from the trees to the left. My heart lurched and I thought of Inuyasha. I heard the roar again. I shuddered and instinctively shrunk into myself so I would feel smaller.

"Go into the trees where the steam is rising." I shouted. They ripped through the air to the left and I almost fell off Sango's cat.

"How did you guys get me out?" I asked loudly once I had my balance again. It was a split second after I said it that I realized it sounded really snobby. Either they didn't notice, or they didn't comment on it. "It is a long story that will be well told later, Lady Chosen. Now is not the time." Miroku said with a hint of a nervous smile.

My dress flapped in the wind noisily and I felt very naked wearing it even though it was thick. My face flushed horribly when I thought of Inuyasha seeing me in a dress. It just couldn't happen. I had to change! Immediately! Sango seemed to sense my disturbance and placed a hand on my shoulder. She comforted me for the wrong reason. "Don't worry. We'll make sure you'll be safe. That's what we came for."

I nodded with a forced smile. I wouldn't say it out loud, but the only person I felt safe with was Inuyasha.

'_Although, he wasn't far away when you were abducted by the feather-lady._' A little voice in my head said.

I shrugged it off with furrowed brows. Sango patted her cat's side and said, "Kilala, we're landing."

We hit the ground softly and Sango swung her legs over the side of her cat. Miroku jumped off of Hachi, and to my complete astonishment, Hachi poofed into a raccoon-dog in a puff of smoke. He took a leaf off of his head and placed it in his kimono pocket. That's right, I said Kimono pocket. He was wearing clothes. He walked on two legs, too.

I gasped and pointed stupidly. "He turned into a raccoon!" I shouted. Then I tripped forward on my knees off Kilala and landed clumsily on my feet. I stared with my mouth open. The other three stared at me the same way. They looked at each other and then looked back at me. Then they burst out laughing.

My face flushed and I crossed my arms. I opened my mouth to say something, but the laughing had stopped. Everything went from something hilarious to something horrifying and silent. I stepped slowly to the direction they were looking in. My eyebrows raised in an extremely sympathetic frown. My hands came up to cover my mouth and my eyes filled with tears.

All of the rocks that surrounded the hot springs had been smashed to rubble. Craters lined the outer parts of the springs where someone had used their fists with and amazing force. There were ragged claw marks ripped through every tree surrounding the springs. Some trees were even ripped out of the ground and had holes in them from someone's fists. What made me really start to cry was the blood that was on some of the trees from someone hitting them so hard.

I stood there shaking with quiet sobs, staring.

Then I felt a hand on my back. I curled my hands into fists under my chin and spun around. Sango stared at me compassionately like she knew how I was feeling.

Let me tell you straight, she had no idea.

"Kagome...This was made by your guardian, right?" She asked softly. I lowered my fists, but they remained clenched at my sides.

I nodded. Sango nodded. "Kilala should be able to track his scent. Can you get back up there for me?" She asked quietly. She walked up to me to help me up Kilala, but I jumped up before she could touch me. I didn't want to be touched. I didn't want to be helped.

I just wanted Inuyasha.

"I'll follow you." Miroku said. Hachi slapped a leaf onto his head and transformed into that huge yellow thing.

Then we were off again.

Kilala would point her nose and sniff deeply, and then she would dart off in another direction. Hours passed in concentrated silence. Miroku and Hachi followed us without noise and the roaring of the creature stopped a while back. The sun set and we were still moving through the air. I was wide awake. I didn't want to be asleep once we found Inuyasha.

We _would_ find him. We just had to.

Once the full moon was high in the sky, I knew that they planned to run all night and through the next day.

Another hour passed and still nothing. My heart was sinking lower with each minute. It sounds corny, but it was true. Inuyasha was the only one I trusted in that huge world that I didn't know. That whole ordeal brought me a lot closer to him even though we were apart.

Sango and Miroku were talking quietly to each other. The night was very still and there didn't seem to be any wind at all.

Then I saw it.

Flashes of yellow light. I heard cries of fury and saw more flashes.

"What's that?" Sango asked, more to herself than to us. My fingers gripped tighter around Kilala's soft fur. I moved myself closer up. My heart hammered in my chest and I listened without breathing. We got closer to the flashing lights bursting through the trees.

I had seen that kind of light before, but only once.

We broke through the trees and hit the ground. My heart stopped. There was an enormous ogre that had just started falling to the ground when we landed. Its insides were spilling out its front, and one of its eyes were missing. It had great slashes all over its purple body. It was at least sixteen feet tall. With horns and claws and a dirty loin-cloth...It was disgusting. And standing in the shadow of its falling form...Under the moonlight...With ogre blood splashed over his body...

Was Inuyasha.

My heart fluttered and a girly grin slapped my face. He looked really cool.

The ogre hit the ground with its knees and the whole earth rumbled. I slipped off Kilala and stood looking at his back. His arms were covered in blood up to below his shoulders, and there was a large tear in his pants down by his left ankle. The thick red blood dripped from his sharp claws. Little blood spots dotted parts of his white hair. The ogre leaned to its right and landed on its side, dead.

The earth shook again.

"Hn. Stupid fool." Inuyasha said with a smirk in his voice. Then one of his ears turned. Kilala lowered her head and hissed. She obviously sensed danger coming from him. Sango moved her hand slowly to the huge boomerang that was strapped to her back, and Miroku raised his staff in front of himself. Hachi ran and hid in the trees.

Inuyasha turned around in two steps. His eyes met mine. We both froze completely. Time had stopped for us.

I heard the far-away sounds of someone speaking, but I didn't pay attention to them. I saw Inuyasha's ears move as he heard them too, but he stayed looking at me. We both had our full attention. Neither of us moved. It was a very emotional moment, but we didn't show any emotion at that time at all.

Then Inuyasha took in a rasping breath and a stunned realization came into his eyes. My eyes started getting wet again, and I didn't want to cry in front of him. I tried to hold it back. The fear that I felt in that room with the dark man came crashing down on me. I felt my jaw trembling. "Kagome." He said. It felt so good to hear him say my name again. There were split seconds when I was in that room that I thought I would never see him or the light of day again.

Then I kind of exploded into loud, racking sobs. "You big stupid idiot!" I screamed. Then I ran and hugged him.

I wrapped my arms around him tightly and cried and cried and cried... He felt stiff and taken aback for a second, but then he hugged me back. That should have made me feel better, but I just cried harder.

"So this is really the Chosen Guardian, huh?" I heard Sango ask. I felt Inuyasha stiffen. He also tightened his arms around me. '_Oh yeah,_' I suddenly thought to myself. '_That's right. Inuyasha doesn't like people very much._' I tried to take deep breathes to quiet that kind of gasping thing that happens to people once they've cried for a long time.

"I knew from the slashes in the trees and the crushed rocks that you weren't _normal_," I felt Inuyasha stiffen even more at that word. "But I never even ventured to think you were a demon." I turned my head back to look at her. I blinked back my tears to clear my vision. I was more-or-less done crying. "I agree." Miroku said. They looked at each other out of the corners of their eyes. Kilala's hair was still bristled on her back. I glared her sharply and she forced herself to relax, almost fearfully. I blinked in surprise.

"Kagome, do you really feel safe with a demon?" Sango asked with a raised eyebrow. Inuyasha broke away from my hug with a snarl and shove me behind him. He stretched his arm out in front of me. "Don't speak to her so casually!" He snarled. I stepped left and right lightly, trying to think of what to do or say to calm the situation. Kilala hissed and stepped in front of Sango.

"You wanna go, you walking carpet!" Inuyasha shouted at Kilala. Kilala let out a panther-like roar and I saw a good view of all of her sharp, white teeth. "If you don't calm down, I'll really let her at you." Sango said, crossing her arms with a glare.

"Good," Inuyasha yelled. "If you want to rush to your deaths so quickly, let her at me so I can kill her in one swipe. Then I'll come for _you_!" He growled darkly with a grin. Sango and Miroku readied their weapons. "We won't go easy on you if you persist!" Miroku shouted in a warning.

Inuyasha stepped forward and shot his middle finger into the air. "Bite me!" He yelled.

"I-Inuyasha," I tapped his shoulder. "What?" He asked without looking at me. "They're the ones that saved me."

Silence.

Inuyasha's claws dropped. "What...?" He asked blankly. "I...I woke up, and I was on Kilala's back...They saved me and brought me to you." Inuyasha stood still for a long time without saying anything. "They did." He said flatly. I nodded and went next to him.

"They did." I said. "Maybe we could try and get along for just a little while?" I asked carefully. Inuyasha's eyebrow twitched and he lowered his head and glared away from them. "Th...Th...Th..." We all leaned closer to him to try and catch what he was trying to say.

His face scrunched in frustration and he inhaled deeply through his nose. "Thank you for rescuing Kagome."

Miroku and Sango were surprised by what he said. They stared at him in silence. "Sure..." Sango said quietly, like she wasn't sure that that was the right thing to say. "It...It was our pleasure." Miroku said, scratching his head. They put their weapons away and looked at each other. "There, see?" I said, smiling. "And you should both know that Inuyasha _never_ says 'thank you.'" I raised my finger to make a point.

"HEY!" Inuyasha shouted and spun around to face me. "I do so say th...th..." He swallowed. "What I just said to them!"

I raised my eyebrow. "Pffft," I put my hand to my mouth. "That's pathetic."

Before Inuyasha could say anything, Miroku butted in. "Excuse me, but we really should make camp." A vein swelled on Inuyasha's head. His eyes narrowed and he turned around. "Let's just get one thing straight here," He said, tilting his head to his shoulder. His long hair fell over his shoulder and his eyes flashed challengingly. He looked like a psycho.

"Save Kagome or not...I make the rules around here. I call the shots. I'm in charge. No one...But me."

He was meant to seem menacing to them, but he gave _me_ chills. I would not like to be on Inuyasha's enemy side...

"It was only a suggestion," Miroku said, raising a hand in defense. He smiled innocently. Sango opened her mouth. "Miroku!" She said his name in angry disbelief. "Don't act like you're apologizing!" Miroku looked at her in fear. "It really was only a suggestion..." He laughed nervously. "Let's go find some place to make camp, Kagome." Inuyasha said to me.

I nodded. He glanced at me up and down and seemed deep in thought for a moment. I tried not to seem embarrassed. It was weird...I felt really different around Inuyasha. It must've taken a kidnapping to make me realize it, but how I liked Inuyasha wasn't...

...Normal...Anymore.

He sighed uncaringly and looked up at the moon. "I don't know why I'm doing this, but I guess I can carry you there." He said arrogantly. My eyes widened. "You will...?" I knew I shouldn't say much of it, because if you say too much about something nice Inuyasha did, he'd get mad at you for it. You have to hear what he said, and when you hear it, then that's it. No questions, no comments.

I stopped talking right away and went up to him. He lowered himself and I climbed onto his back. There was dry blood all over his shirt. I knew it wasn't his, so I was calm about it. I held onto his shoulders and he bolted off. I turned around quickly with what little time I had left, and waved Sango and Miroku to follow. I still wanted to hear how they had saved me.

They disappeared behind us and Inuyasha picked up speed. '_Does he plan to lose them...?_' I wondered.

"...You..." I blinked and moved my head closer to his to hear him better. "Hm?" I stared.

"You okay?" He asked. I blushed a little at the question. I didn't expect him to ask that. I smiled happily. "Yep. I'm okay." He gave a grunt of acknowledgment. "I'll tell you everything once we make camp." After I said that, it seemed like an enormous weight was lifted from him. It was then that I realized he was probably thinking about the possible things I was going through.

There were way too many possibilities to think about..._Way_ too many.

I started feeling really sorry for him. While I was chained up talking to a ghost boy, he was running like a maniac trying to find me. The longer he took to find me, the worse things that could have been happening to me... '_Poor guy._' I thought. I patted his back.

"Don't worry, nothing very bad happened. I'm okay." He nodded. He was much more relaxed then.

There was a moving shadow above us. I looked _way_ up and saw Kilala's belly. Hachi was next to her, way up in the sky...

While they flew in the air, I flew on the ground.

"Thanks for trying so hard to find me, Inuyasha." I said. "Hn," He shook his head. "I was so close to his base, I could smell the stench of his minions. If that ogre hadn't tied me up, I woulda been there." To my dread, I found myself wishing Sango and Miroku hadn't saved me. I wished that Inuyasha had been the one to save me, even if it meant being in that room for a few more hours.

'_I'm a horrible person,_' I scolded myself. '_I should be very grateful to those two for saving me. It's wonderful that they saved me..._'

I shook off my stupid daydreams of an angry, heroic Inuyasha and tried to focus on the blurred trees around us.

After a little while, he slowed down and stopped. We were in front of the mouth of a huge cave. It was freaking _huge_. I stared with my mouth open. "Woah..." I gazed at it. Inuyasha lowered me off his back. "Kagome," I looked at him questioningly. "Hm?" I crossed my arms behind my back. "You're in a dress." My heart stopped and my face flushed. '_Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap!_' I panicked in my mind.

I pulled at part of the dress skirt and suddenly found its purple color and swirly, velvet designs very interesting.

"You got it at that place?" He asked with narrowed eyes. I didn't look at him. I nodded with a frown. Why did I feel so guilty?

Wind blew all around us as Kilala and Hachi landed. "I'll get you new clothes tomorrow." He said, and he made his way inside the cave. I was unsure of what to do for a second, but then I stumbled after him. I knew that he expected me to follow him.

Sango, Hachi, and Miroku followed me into the cave. Kilala lay down at the entrance and went to sleep.

"Persistent bunch, ain't ya?" Inuyasha grumbled under his breath. "I heard that, Guardian." Sango said warily. "So did I." Followed Miroku. "And I did, too!" Hachi stated firmly. Inuyasha's teeth gritted and I heard the sounds of his knuckles popping.

"Inuyasha, calm down." I hissed in a whisper. "They're so annoying." He whispered back angrily. "I can still hear you." Sango said in sing-song. Inuyasha whipped around. "So what if you can hear me?" He barked. "I can say a lot more _interesting things_ behind your back if you wanna listen more!"

Then they went off again with their shouts and insults and threats.

I fingered my forehead and looked at them all, trying to find a solution. '_Oh, man..._' I sighed to myself.

'_This is going to be a long night._'

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_**Insane-san says: **WOOT. Another chapter, another day. Took me hours. WOAH. Yep. 11:29PM in the Eastern time, baybee. Hope you guys enjoyed this one. I liked writing it. I pressure-washed about a fourth of my driveway, and my hands are shaking from the vibration. I'm surprised I was even able to write almost a whole chapter. XD -- That's a laughing face if you turn your head to the left. (for all who don' know)_

_EVERYTHING went as planned. I'm updating on Thursday (because I'm stubborn), so even if you don't read this on Thursday, just know that it was up! -evil smirk-_

_Until next time, m'loves. An enormous THANK YOU to every single person that reviewed. Much love, guys.

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	19. XIX

_**Insane-san says: **I know you're mad because this chapter's late...But...Whatever..heh..heheh... -shifty eyes-_

_Well as it turns out, I am very unhappy with this chapter. It didn't seem to flow like my other ones...In fact, later on I might re-write it and replace it with a new one. Don't worry, if that happens I'll let you know. So if this chapter sucks, just know that I think it sucks, too. If you think it's great, then I'm very happy. _

_Meh...And I noticed that ONCE AGAIN, I forgot to add the title to the last chapter. I made sure to add it in this one. _

_In answer to you, MikoTennyo, Kagome's dress goes down to her feet, so there's not much to look up into. I thought about how the dress skirt might be blown up around Kagome as the wind rushed past, but it made less and less sense each time I thought about it. For SOME reason. Heheheheh.  
Plus, Miroku was riding above them on Hachi. Don't think Miroku is not going to have some moments, but as far as the dress goes, you can see how I worked that out? Thanks for your lovely review, once again. I find myself beaming each time I read any of your reviews. -grin-  
_

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**P**eacock **F**eathers

**XIX**_

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"So then the guy says, 'It's not my mother's, it's mine!'"

Laughter exploded and echoed through the cave.

Of course I wasn't laughing. And neither was Inuyasha. Miroku, Sango, and Hachi were laughing and crying over Miroku's _funny_ story. Inuyasha and I had just settled down in some nice spots in the cave to sleep when Miroku suddenly starting telling this story. I can't really remember what it was about. I just remember the ending because I kept thinking about how stupid it was.

"It's pretty late now, isn't it?" Sango asked with a chuckle, wiping the tears from her eyes. Miroku sighed with a smile and nodded. "Yes, you're right. We should go to sleep. It's a wonder that those two can actually sleep with all the noise we were making...And especially since the Chosen went through such an ordeal..." I wasn't sleeping. I knew Inuyasha wouldn't sleep, either. He wouldn't let himself sleep.

"You're right," Sango said in a quiet voice. "It's kind of amazing. It's scary too, though, that they can actually sleep..." Her voice gradually grew quieter untill she was whispering. I rolled over noisely again. That was what, the 100th time I had rolled over?

Rock isn't the best matress in the world.

I almost started to laugh when I thought about how they thought we were sleeping. I wondered what Inuyasha was thinking, sitting against the rock wall, listening to everything. He knew I was awake, too. He could hear it in my breathing and my movements, I bet.

Suddenly I had a nice idea.

I would stay awake untill I knew for sure that Sango and Miroku were asleep. Then I would sit up and talk to Inuyasha all night!

A grin stretched across my face and I tried to hide my face with my hair. What was I getting so bubbly about?

"So, what's the new plan?" Sango asked quietly. I heard Miroku sigh in concentration. "...I think...We should focus on those two's plan. If they even have a plan..." He added. I heard movement and guessed they were lying down.

"That's what I was thinking." Sango said. "We should stay with them. That's what I think. To help guard the Chosen." Miroku made an agreeing kind of noise. He made it at the same time as Inuyasha's quiet growl, so I don't think they noticed.

But I did.

I looked to my left where Inuyasha sat and saw him glaring heavily at their shadowy forms. His eyes glowed golden in the darkness of the cave. He wasn't happy at all about those two and their plans. I really didn't care that much, but when Inuyasha had something in his head, I usually felt myself swaying over to his side.

"Well, goodnight, Sango. Goodnight, Hachi." Miroku said. They all bid each other a good night. Minutes passed in silence.

I lay on my back with my eyes open, staring at the stalagmites way up above me. When they were asleep, I would speak to Inuyasha all night and tell him my story privately. We would discuss what we thought about the two new members of our group as well. So I waited. I didn't move. I didn't speak.

I just watched the stalagmites grow.

* * *

"Get up, fool!"

My eyes snapped open at the harsh hissing in my ear. I blinked to clear my vision. My eyes darted to my right ear and I saw Inuyasha right next to my face. My face flushed and I raised an eyebrow. "C'mon, we're going." He whispered. My heart fluttered and I nodded. I'm not exactly sure what was going through my head then, but I got all embarrassed. And I finally admitted to myself that...

I was seriously crushing on Inuyasha.

The sun was just barely giving any light to the world so I knew it was really early. I stood up and stretched my joints.

Inuyasha put a finger to his mouth to make sure that I knew to be quiet. He did it in a rude way like, "Shut up!" So I kept my mouth closed. I followed him and we walked out of the cave. I looked over my shoulder. It didn't feel right to me to just leave them there.

But if Inuyasha wanted it to happen, then I would do what he said. Even though I was supposed to be above him in the way of making descisions, I usually followed whatever order he gave me. Which is weird when I think about it...

Ever since I woke up, I had this feeling that I was missing something. You know that feeling you get when you're going to do something, and then you go into the room to get what you wanted, but you can't remember what it was?

And you try so hard to remember, but it doesn't come to you? That's how I felt. I tried to bite it down because it's an annoying feeling.

"Why are we leaving them?" I asked Inuyasha. "Tsk," He looked back at the cave and quickened his pace a little. "Because I don't like those two. Err.._Three_." He said distastefully. I took it that he didn't like little monster things like Hachi. "You mean four." I said with a small smile. Then my jaw dropped. "Hey, why didn't Kilala wake up and do something about us leaving?" I asked in astonishment.

I heard Inuyasha chuckle darkly.

"I took care of that last night. She won't be getting up for a _while_." He smirked at me over his shoulder. My eyes widened and I swallowed. "What did you do, exactly...?" I dared to ask. I picked up my pace and walked next to him.

"Well, it's a little something called poison." He said in a quiet proudness.

My heart stopped. "Y-You killed her?" I said with bulging eyes. Inuyasha made a disappointed face. "Unfortunately, no." I sighed with relief. "I didn't have the right ingredients to kill her. I just made her sleep for a long time." He said. It was in the voice that you sometimes hear when someone's boasting casually about something they did.

I was a little bit naive then I'll admit, so I didn't notice it. I was actually really excited that he could make potions like that.

"Wow!" I said with a little jump. "You can make things like that?" I grinned hugely. He smirked and turned his eyes away from me. "Yeah, I guess I can make 'em pretty good. Th-" He was cut off by a loud, echoing yell coming from behind us.

I jumped at the sound. I felt the hairs on my body stand up in the rush. Instinctively, I looked at Inuyasha's face for guidance. His pupils were paper-thin and glowed with an angry consentration. A fang showed through his lips. He went down on a knee. I climbed on his back. I felt the strength in his legs charge up and prepared myself for the bolt.

But he was too late.

A big, fat boomerang flew out of no where. It split through trees and flew in a circle around us. Then it disappeared through the brush behind us. I felt Inuyasha sigh in aggitation and he let me down. A split second after, Miroku and Sango jumped out of the trees and stood just a few feet in front of us.

Sango was seething with rage. Miroku was calm and steady, but was only to hide his obvious anger.

"You thought it would be fine to just ditch us while we slept, huh!" Sango shouted. I shook my head and waved my hands in front of myself to sort of calm the angry tension in the air. "Nah," Inuyasha defended himself with a raised eyebrow. "I just came out to get some water." He nodded his head towards me. "She was awake and bored so I decided to let her come."

There was silence.

I didn't dare speak; afraid my voice would give away the lie. I just smiled and nodded with closed eyes.

"Well," Sango searched inside of herself in obvious desperation to prove us wrong. "What about Kilala?" She shouted. She took a step towards us and shook her boomerang threateningly. Inuyasha stepped back from her gesture with a sneer. "Oh," Inuyasha looked casually into her eyes. "She wouldn't let us leave the cave, so I threw some sleeping powder at her."

His words, and especially his casual tone, seemed to enrage her even more. Her firey temper was amazing to me. Untill she was completely satisfied with something, she would continue to be angry with it. And she would just get angrier and angrier.

"Why didn't you wake me so I could calm her?" She pointed an accusing finger at Inuyasha.

Inuyasha looked away from her angrily with a frown. He was a really good actor. I tried to think about where he got his skills, but the more I thought about it, the more I didn't want to think about it...

"Kagome didn't want to be rude and wake you up since you rescued her and all..." He said quietly.

I bit my tongue in my mouth. Miroku and Sango looked at me. "Is that true?" Miroku asked seriously. I nodded. "Sorry, guys." I placed a guilty hand behind my head and tried to laugh a little.

I thought we were cornered and done for, but they actually completely dropped their guard. Sango smiled a little. "As long as it won't hurt Kilala." She said. "And as long as you two were really going for water." Miroku said in a dark voice. My heart sped up. I thought for the whole time that Sango had the power in their group, but I was wrong. At that moment I knew.

Miroku was the stronger one. If he wanted to, he could be dangerous. I knew it. He knew how to hurt someone with a look. How to pry and threaten them. Maybe he knew we were lying. Maybe he didn't. But that was the scariest part.

"You guys can come to if you want." I said in my happiest voice. "All this tense air is pretty bad..." I spun around and gave Inuyasha an urgeful look. He had to lead us to water. "No, that's okay." Sango said with a smile. My eyebrow winced. I turned around slowly.

"It's...Okay?" I asked with a blink. Sango nodded and turned around. "We'll be waiting at the cave. I have a couple of plans I'd like to share with you two." Then she went into the trees. Miroku smiled and said, "If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to come along."

I could almost hear Inuyasha screaming in his mind, "_Noooooo!_" Hahahah. I held back laughter just thinking about it.

"Sure," Inuyasha said with a regal air. He turned around in such a way that it looked like he was showing off his strong shoulders and back. He had more muscle than Miroku, that was for sure. I saw it at that moment. Then again, Miroku was covered in robes...Maybe he had more muscle, but it just didn't show...

'_Here I go again,_' I scolded myself. '_Comparing guys in my head. I'm horrible!_'

So we began walking. Miroku was humming some happy song quietly as we walked through the trees. He seemed very peaceful and care-free. Almost too care-free...That was the strange thing about him. He almost seemed dull-witted. But it was almost too easy to doubt that. I started thinking that it was all just a mask. He wasn't fluffy and stupid.

He was horrifyingly smart.

"Something the matter, Lady Kagome?" He asked me suddenly. I jumped out of my thoughts. My eyes met his. "Oh, uh..No! Nothing's wrong." I scratched my neck and sighed. "Nothing at all..." Then my mind started floating off to that feeling of forgetfulness that I had. Every time I tried to think about it my mind would wander to the memory of the _dark man_'s lair.

Those were memories that, to this day, I don't care to recall.

"Ah, but I think there is something troubling you." He smiled knowingly at me. I blinked slowly. "You...do?" I asked.

"Yes, I do. You don't have to tell me...How about I do something to cheer you up?" He put on a playful grin. I stumbled over a root and almost fell, but I regained my ballance. I flushed in embarrassment at my almost-accident. "Go right ahead." I answered him.

'_Is this really the same guy as before? He seemed so dark and moody..._' I thought.

He reached his arm into his robes and pulled out something that looked like an old, wooden Yo-yo.

A black string came out of it. He placed the string around his finger and then threw the thing out in front of him. I was about to laugh and say, "That's not how you do it!" but I kept my mouth shut. Because instead of the Yo-yo flopping back down to the ground, it stayed in the air in front of him. It was as stiff as wood.

I watched with an open mouth as he walked steadily with the thing stretched out in front of him. It made a quiet kind of humming sound.

Then, suddenly, the Yo-yo sprung forwards and flew through the trees. Only the black string was visible. I waited for something to happen. After a moment, in the distance there was an angry cry of pain. I jumped. I didn't expect it.

Apparently Inuyasha didn't either, because he leapt backwards and grabbed me. I jumped again at the sudden shock of his actions. He growled and looked around for danger. His ears stood straight up as he listened closely. Miroku was taken aback by all the commotion.

Then he laughed. "It's a simple device used to locate troublesome demons. That's all." Out of no where, the wooden Yo-yo object came whizzing out of the woods, and landed directly in the palm of Miroku's hand. He smiled at me.

'_Man, this is weird...One second he's evil, and the next he's...Fun._'

I smiled back at him and laughed. "That was so cool." I said. He arched an eyebrow. "'Cool?'" He echoed in question. "KEH," I heard. I blinked. "That wasn't cool, that was _stupid_! Thanks to you, that '_troublesome demon_' is coming for a visit! Thanks a lot, stupid human." Inuyasha snapped. Miroku's jaw dropped and his face went blank.

Before I got a chance to reply, something exploded through the trees in front of us.

'_It's amazing how I seem to find the funnest things to play with._' I thought. It was another Rupture Wolf.

It stared right into my eyes and growled deep in it's chest.

My insides shuddered and I backed up a little. "Woah, there!" I said loudly. "It was him!" I pointed to Miroku.

Inuyasha laughed and glared at Miroku. He pulled me out of the way, chuckling all the while. Miroku put his hands up in defense and stared at the wolf. His staff was in one of his hands, so to the wolf, it looked like he was raising it in attack.

The wolf opened it's huge, slobbery jaws and let out a huge howl of rage.

Miroku ripped the beaded rosary from his hand and yelled, "Kazaana!"

Air hole.

Inuyasha and I were absolutely freaked out at that point...

When he removed the beads, it was like a black hole was in his hand, sucking everything in its path.

The wolf didn't even have time to think before it got sucked into Miroku's hand. It's tail was the last to disappear, like a spaghetti noodle being slurped up in someone's mouth...

My eyes were like saucers. I stared. Miroku wrapped his hand in the beads quickly, and the suction stopped.

He turned around and stared at us with a smile. "Well, that takes care of that." He said.

Inuyasha fumbled for words.

"It certainly does." I replied.

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**_Insane-san says: _**_Like I said, I hate this chapter. I feel like it's the worst I've ever done. So much of the late chapter was because I was debating whether or not I should delete it and start over or not...I was constantly deleting chunks and adding chunks. At one point I did whipe it all out and start over. Then I got tired of it and thought, "Y'know what? Screw this." And I ended up just finishing it off._

_Anyways, reviews would be MUCH appreciated...Thanks for reading, guys. I'll see you again? -.O _

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